Don’t trust them. Drummers really just want to be out front. For five years Andy Ingram, the drummer for pop band Ruetschle, has been putting together the songs for his debut as XL427. Perfection takes time and frustration and obsessive renovation and a bit of procrastination. Now after all these years Poptek Records is excited to announce that "Yesterdays Forever" by XL427 is available now.Ingram, who runs Poptek Records and has entwined himself drumming for a majority of the bands involved, has captured the subtle sentimentality of life with his debut. Yet like the rest of life, XL427 is never a solo act. The band is filled out by Mike and Cooper from Ruetschle as well as Dan Stahl from Shrug. The six songs on the album turn sound waves into colors that can be seen through the eyes of indie kids, new wavers, spiritualists, romantics, and rock fans alike. Similar to everything else that Poptek releases, the songs are assuredly catchy and memorable. Unlike the sugary pop the label is known for, XL427 strikes a worshipful and sometimes conflictive mood on "Yesterdays Forever'.Ingram states his intent for "Yesterdays Forever", “I really just wanted to write some songs to God that were too catchy and quirky for the Christian industry and that were too pure for the drunks. I think I achieved my goal in writing songs that I can still listen to which also alienates any other potential audience.â€It is this disconnection to classification that make XL427's music wonderful. In meeting the honest and modest singer/songwriter (and drummer) his independence from the mainstream is easy to recognize. He has made his own way both in music and life. In music, Ingram has been a part of the scenes in both Dayton, Ohio and Seattle, Washington as a promoter and musician. In life, he has been a leader in many simple church gatherings and still loves to feed the homeless walking the streets in whatever city he is in.He is so true to his core principles of sincerity, both in music and life, that Andy Ingram will be too embarrassed to even read this, much less edit this. But I speak the truth without argument from anyone who has ever met Andy or heard XL427.XL427 is the final result of Ingram picking up the guitar and exposing his inner-self. His transition from drummer to singer was not overnight but it was inevitable for someone as talented and pop-minded as he. The debut, "Yesterday's Forever", is so good and well thought out that it may inspire other disgruntled drummers to make the switch.But change is not for the meek. It takes a special dedication to melody to really make it work. Those dedicated melodies make XL427 work and are part of why everyone needs to hear "Yesterday's Forever", out now on Poptek Records.
- written by Kris Neises
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