The Northeast Collective is back with “Lafayette”, a beautiful new single that is sure to make it onto everyone’s playlist! The Northeast Collective is comprised of Long Island native, Chris Prestamo. Chris gathered a group of musicians from the Northeast of the US from varying musical projects to make up The Northeast Collective. “Lafayette” features Chris Prestamo (lead vocals, rhythm guitar/drums), Nathan Teikari (lead guitar), Jonathan Gargano (bass) and Warren Trunz (producer/synth).
The Northeast Collective released “Lafayette” on August 7th, 2020. The song starts off with a beautiful guitar chord that catches the listeners ear immediately. The beginning of the song has a soft, calm tone. As the track progresses, Chris’s vocals increase in intensity as the guitar and drums match him perfectly. Around the 2:00 minute mark, the song begins to pick up in intensity. What impressed me the most is how well the band was able to increase the intensity while staying true to their indie-rock roots! Between the rhythm guitars, foot-tapping bass, and pristine vocals, The Northeast Collective is a force to be reckoned with!
In addition, the slow build up of the tone of the song created a perfect representation of the emotions felt in Chris’s vocals. When speaking to Chris, he stated that “Lafayette was written just days after weeks on tour. Feelings of homesickness and discontentment were bubbling up on the road and I felt as though simply getting home would fix all my problems. Upon arriving home I began to realize that I was just missing tour. I discovered that in my heart I wasn’t happy allowing myself to be happy simply chasing after thrills and always trying to rely on external forces to be my source of happiness. The song explores finding happiness within yourself and searching for meaning in the wrong places.” This is a message that so many people need to hear. Many people find it difficult to create their own happiness. They need to be doing something exciting or hanging out with a group of people. Often times when we aren’t doing these things, we complain of boredom. “Lafayette” leaves us with a message that we can absolutely learn from. It’s one thing to find happiness from others, but it’s much more rewarding to be able to find happiness within yourself.
We first featured The Northeast Collective back in 2018 when the blog was fairly new. I immediately fell in love with their catchy sound, relatable lyrics and master musicianship. The band exceeded my expectations with this new single! Be sure to follow The Northeast Collective on all social media and check out “Lafayette” on the blog’s Spotify playlist: After Hours Review!