Petey Gives Himself Over to an Enthralling Emotional Deluge in "I'll Wait"
Alongside the announcement of his impending album, USA, Petey has crafted the sonic encapsulation of overwhelm with his latest single, “I’ll Wait.”
“I’ll Wait” starts like a sucker punch, raging with punk drums and a twinkling indie rock guitar intro. The arrangement is both delicate in its lush musical intricacies and staggering like a wall of noise, washing over listeners with a rush of feeling.
Petey’s vocal delivery is a core aspect of his artistry, as he abandons any semblance of restraint to embrace a raw, emotionally-fueled performance. He lets his voice go where it needs to, at times unwinding into high spirals and at other times leaning into a raspy speak-singing range. It’s a very personal sound to experience. In both an inviting and provocative way, Petey urges listeners to give in to the passion of this one moment of restrained chaos, just by giving into it himself.
The track lives in that space with a Medium Build or a Noah Kahan-type genre-bender, existing as neither one thing nor the next in the beautiful way that you can find a home within its sound. For me, Petey scratches the Midwest emo itch I shamelessly will always have, but while also carving out corners of indie rock hooky-ness and emanating the storytelling of a lauded singer-songwriter. I’m immediately compelled to see his story through, shouting along with the background vocals simply because Petey’s earnestness makes me believe in the rage of it all.
“I’ll Wait” is barely three minutes long, but it feels like an odyssey of emotion fanned out across that short span, which perfectly represents the lyrical message. “I’ll wait for the moment to pass / it doesn’t really matter how I feel / between now and then, it always ends,” sings Petey. This song is that space between moments—whether it’s seconds or years, it’ll always be full of complexities, layers of nostalgia, and hope living alongside anxiety.
Watch the "I'll Wait" video below:
USA is out September 22 via Capitola Records. You can find the cover art and complete tracklist below: