Buffalo, NY punk/emo quartet Pentimento have been scrapping it out on the road for the last four years with bands like Real Friends, Dads and A Loss For Words, but with their newly released full-length, the band’s making its biggest waves yet. An evolutionary leap forward, I, No Longer explores well-worn themes like heartbreak with particular attention to texture, wit and depth. In doing so, it manages the near-impossible task of uncovering novel perspectives on familiar ground. Intrigued? You ought to be. Here are 10 things you should know about Pentimento as you prepare to dive in. 

They Almost Stalled Before They Started 

Pentimento’s 2012 self-titled debut LP almost didn’t see the light of day when, on the verge of the album’s release, a label Pentimento had associated with early in their careers threatened legal action, going so far as to have the band’s new music pulled from YouTube. The band parried by giving the album away for free. “We definitely learned a lot of lessons coming out of that,” says drummer/songwriter Mike Hansen. “It’s helped us keep on the straight and narrow, making sure that we do everything legit.” 

They’re Not Afraid to Play Double Duty

In 2014, Pentimento found themselves with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity when emo legend James Dewees (My Chemical Romance, the Get Up Kids, Coalesce) invited them to tour with his long-running project Reggie and the Full Effect. The catch: rather than just opening for Dewees, Pentimento would also serve as his backing band. “He’s a guy who’s been everywhere and done everything, but he’s still excited to get on stage and he still loves to play and he still has a great time,” Hansen says with obvious reverence. “It was a lesson in how to keep your shit together if you’re going to be a person who commits 20-years-or-so of their life to being on the road.” 

Pentimento’s Heart Resides Behind the Drum Kit  

Vocalist/guitarist Jeremiah Pauly serves as the band’s frontman onstage, but it’s drummer Hansen who takes the helm in the writing process. “I end up demoing a full song,” says Hansen, “with the lyrics and the melody and all that.” But if everything originates with Hansen, it’s only when the band’s turned loose on his drafts that the songs truly become Pentimento songs. “If it’s worth working on, then we get down to it at practice.,. As far as that’s concerned, it’s a super democratic situation. I guess that’s kind of the idea—I have this skeleton, and I don’t really know the best ways to edit myself.” 

But That Doesn’t Mean They Aren’t Willing to Experiment with Process

“Stuck Forever,” first released on a 7” this past summer in advance of the band’s new album I, No Longer, found Hansen and Pauly trying something new. “Jerry and I sat on opposite couches one day,” Hansen recalls. “[We] both had notebooks, and we would talk about situational stuff and tell stories and get in the mood. We sat there for a few hours and, pretty much line for line, wrote the song. We were pushing each other.” The experiment was a success—“Stuck Forever” has become a clear fan-favorite. 

“Stuck Forever,” Despite Being Released This Summer in Advance of I, No Longer, is Actually the Newest Song on the Album

“‘Stuck Forever’ was the last thing that we finished before leaving the studio,” notes Hansen. “We just sat down to jam one day and it kind of popped out. That’s the absolute newest song.” Still, he cautions not to read too much into the track’s vibe—the band plans to keep looking forward. “I don’t know if that indicates anything for the future of the band, because even going back and listening to this record, I’m now starting to wonder about improving on it, and what to do to keep it progressive.” 

Indeed, That Commitment to Progression Comes Through Loud and Clear on I, No Longer 

Pentimento spent nearly two years working on I, No Longer. For Hansen, much of that time was spent “figuring out the math behind, like, how does your band get better at what you do? How do we make the best out of the things that we’re capable of? I knew that it had to be something real.” To that end, Hansen wrote and wrote until he was more than ready—the band entered the studio with nearly 25 demos ready to sort through. 

And Demoing the Album Might Have Been the Easiest Part of the Process 

In late 2014, Pentimento entered the studio with veteran producer Paul Leavitt (All Time Low, Senses Fail.) Leavitt put the band through the paces, in a way they didn’t even know was possible. “We always thought in the past that we were taking our time making a record,” says Hansen. “We always thought we were paying attention to detail. We always thought that we were trying our best. But we really didn’t know what that was until we got to the studio this time around. We were in Baltimore for a month living in a very small apartment connected to the studio. It was literally just a bedroom. No interaction socially, none of our friends or anything were around. We were just in the studio: music, 24/7, for over a month.” It was a test of endurance. 

But if the Recording Session was Grueling, It Was Also Worth It 

Hansen credits Leavitt’s guidance and the work ethic he imposed on the recording session for forging Pentimento into the band they were always meant to be. Or as Hansen puts it, “We sound like a real band now. Not only just in the production aspect. It is our best material. I’m not saying they’re the best songs ever written or anything—I just know that they’re the best Pentimento songs ever written. I know that this is much stronger material than the stuff in the past, because I can feel it.” And Hansen’s not alone in that sentiment; I, No Longer has garnered near-universal praise for its trenchant lyrics and willingness to push the boundaries of pop-punk and emo in daring, unique ways. 

And the Critics Aren’t the Only Ones Who Agree 

“It’s easy for a person like me to forget that these songs are new to so many people because we’ve been sitting on them for so long,” Hansen professes. But if Hansen is having a little trouble with perspective, perhaps that’s because of how quickly fans have latched onto the band’s newest material. At recent shows, the reaction to songs from I, No Longer has been so strong—stronger than the band’s more classic tunes—that Pentimento are considering phasing most of their old material out of their live setlist in favor of new jams. 

Ultimately, for Pentimento, Nothing Matters More Than the Music 

“Our success is contingent on the music, because that’s all that we have,” says Hansen. “We’re just a small band. We don’t get crazy tour opportunities and we don’t have management advocating for stuff like that. There’s not free equipment and money being thrown at us. We have to work for it.” But he also recognizes that, in the end, there’s one thing that’s even more important than all the hard work. “It’s not just about putting the nose to the grindstone on the road, it’s about writing songs that are meaningful. You have to do your own thing, and your art has to be true.”