Invaluable - Searching, Waiting

Artist Website: Bandcamp
Netlabel Website: N/A

Track list:

1 - Atencion!

2 - Kyle Goodwin

3 - Depth

4- 2003

5 - Nationalistic Ties

6 - Capital Log

Download links: [Bandcamp]

I'm not sure why, but it seems that for many punk musicians, the progression to folk/acoustic music is a natural choice. Greg Graffin, Nikola Sarcevic and Frank Turner have all released fantastic solo folk albums, even though they've built their careers on the punk bands that they perform with. Whatever the reason, acoustic punk is something I always enjoy listening to, and Searching, Waiting by Invaluable is no exception.

On Invaluable's bandcamp page, frontman (and only man) Keith Baillargeon warns listeners that there is "no polish here folks, this is about as rough as they get." Personally, I've heard far rougher demos with much less polish. Even though the solo acoustic guitar and voice seem to leave the overall sound slightly anemic at times, Keith's playing is highly proficient for the style of music, and his voice was instantly reminiscent to me of such great punk vocalists as Jeff Rosenstock, Tomas Kalnoky, and Brian Fallon. The solid, slightly rough tone of his voice lends itself perfectly to his music, especially the more up-tempo tunes.

While there were a couple of tunes that didn't really do much for me (specifically Depth and Capitol Log), I enjoyed listening to the EP. The song 2003 was by far my favorite track of the bunch, and I couldn't help but imagine what the song would sound like with a full band to flesh out the sound a bit. Overall, Searching, Waiting is quite a solid demo/EP, and Invaluable shows quite a bit of promise as a solo musician. I only hope that Keith gets the chance at some point to record some of these songs with a few more instruments added into the mix.