Based in New York, YACOVELLI, named for its front man Alex Yacovelli, is an ever-changing band in the Neo-Grunge, Punk, and Alternative rock scenes, continuously experimenting and coming up with different mixes from its wide-ranged influences that extend from Nirvana to Billy & Elton.
Influences go beyond music, however. Though educated in professional settings and relatively experienced in underground music, New York itself, its gritty urban sweat and swagger is the real force behind the band’s identity. This is clearly the case for their latest experimentation, “Tell Me Off”, released on the 18th of July.
Diving right into action, the single’s grungy beginning that immediately falls into gnarly guitar work, resisting any smooth transition and instead embracing a chaotic, immediate approach that could best be described as youthful—breathless, with relentless music and vocals that reflect the passionate love story the song is about, “the magnetism of heated tensions” as Alex himself describes it.
Opposition in the song doesn’t eliminate the attraction, it intensifies it. This is also the case for the musical and vocal elements; forces that clash into each other endlessly create a certain attractive rhythm that pulls you in, rather than turn you away. The song’s most appealing moments are the electric guitar solo interlude, where underneath the grit and garage-inspired musical effects, pure skill is allowed a moment to shine. The rest of the song takes a hypnotising effect with the gutty whispered chorus.
Part of a series of single releases, “Tell Me Off” proves that YACOVELLI is a band worth paying attention to.
