Originally published on July 22nd, 2025
Preface
Man, my dad and I had a weird relationship. We were oil and water and we somehow managed to get along pretty well for most of our lives. I kicked him out of our house when I was in college and, that same night, I drove him to the bus station, we gave each other a great big hug before we said good bye, and I watched him get on a greyhound to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, not knowing if I’d ever see him again.
My father would say he was proud of me. He’d tell me that he was proud of me, generally. He was also pretty critical, so much to the point that I didn’t always feel like he was proud of me.
When I would ask him to go to one of my basketball games, he’d say, “You should stick to music.”
When I would ask him to one of my gigs, he’d say, “You should be playing country music.”
We still very much loved each other, in spite of him being so hard to please. We used to talk for hours. And nothing beat when he and I would pass a guitar back and forth to one another to play each other the newest songs we had written.
He was also there when my once promising band went from “any day now,” to the band that nobody remembered; when I crashed out from the realization that I had waited too long, hadn’t done enough, and now my dream would not be realized.
When I decided I was going to digitally release an EP in 2011, I’ll never forget his behavior the day it released. The man couldn’t text but there he was, on iTunes, trying to figure out how to buy it. After walking him through how to buy it, I heard him start the first song. He didn’t say a word but I swear I could hear him smiling through the phone.
That’s a core memory, along with the one and only time I sang and played for my father-in-law, two weeks before he passed away. We had known each other for nearly a decade and he never heard me play and sing until that night. I wish I would have played more for him.
I consider myself to have had two fathers in my life. Randy (dad) and Glenn (pop). In the end, I admired both men extraordinarily and I miss them so much. I’m so happy to have gotten to have those moments with them.
About the Artist
“Wow” ~ Impulse Nine’s Dad. This was the last word he ever said, after listening to the song, “I’m Sorry About Your Everything.”
Impulse Nine is an independent artist out of Tucson, Arizona, who plays instrumental rock music. In August, he plans to release his debut album.
As it turns out, this debut is a long time coming. Impulse Nine has dedicated decades of time, energy, and hard work into his project that is aptly titled, “Nothing Is Easy.”
“Doing nothing is easy. But I told my mom I’d make the best album I could. I told my dad I’d make the best album I could. I told my stepdad I’d make the best album I could. And for myself, I wanted to always listen to this and think, I would change nothing. But nothing is easy.” ~ Steve, Impulse Nine
This album is the product of work compiled for a quarter of a century, hundreds of demos recorded, stemming from a variety of influences. This album lived with Steve as if it were a person, moving with him from “a shithole apartment,” to a starter home, a personal office to a corporate office. It went with him to the park, to hospital rooms, on airplanes. (taken from Impulse Nine EPK) Infusing a variety of rock genres, ambient styles, and drawing from influences like U2, Radiohead, The Smashing Pumpkins, and Muse, Nothing Is Easy is about the perseverance of personal tragedy through loss of loved ones and how we adapt through the constant changes in society.
About the Album
Nothing is Easy is an 8-song album with a run time of over 35 minutes. It is the debut album of Arizona-based independent artist, Impulse Nine. It will release on August 1st, 2025. It was written, performed, recorded, and produced by Impulse Nine. It was mixed by Christian Burnett and mastered by Jim Blackwood at AZPM. It will be available on CD, Vinyl, and on all streaming platforms.
About the Music
Nothing is Easy is vibrant with influence. Opening with the six-minute I’m Sorry About Your Everything, we begin with an airy piano, with its vibrant notes playing over a melody that softly resembles Kurt Cobain’s vocal melody in Nirvana’s hit song, All Apologies. As instruments come in, the piano is supported by layers of percussion, chimes, bass guitar, and layers of electric guitar. There is a progressiveness to the song, then it begins to pull back and we’re left with strings, percussion, and a bass guitar before ultimately building back to the climax of the song.
A Wake opens with a dreamy synth that sounds similar to soundtracks from the 80’s; from movies like The Neverending Story or Flight of the Navigator. As the song continues, the full band comes in over the synth and even features horn parts as the melody plays similar to an Irish folk tune.
Heavy Metal Mama gives the listeners yet a different look at the dynamic capabilities of Impulse Nine as it sounds like late 90’s, early 2000’s Muse. Dueling guitar parts, heavy drum and thick bass guitar give the song incredible depth. Heavy Metal Mama pulsates with energy and it refuses to let off of the gas as it builds and builds. It also features a music video from when the single released last year. It was one of the first Blind Reactions done by FMOF. You can see it below.
Fireflies gives us the fourth look at Impulse Nine’s diverse talent in as many songs. Opening with an acoustic guitar that sounds like it could be roots influenced, the rest of the band comes in and the song transforms into this piano-heavy alt rock song that could be a mix of influences like Coldplay and Staind.
All-Nighter opens with a groovy bass, percussion that is backed in reverb. Then as the electric guitar comes in, I hear the U2 influence. It could have been Edge playing the accented vibrant tones in this song that could have fit right into the middle of The Joshua Tree.
Nothing is Easy pulls from several different places as it takes us through each of its chapters. Impulse Nine is equally talented in each of the influenced genres he showed us. The incorporation of a variety of instruments, sounds, styles, and mixes give the album many angles to interpret it. The entire project plays like one big work, rather than 8 individual songs even though the 8 songs stem from different influences.
Final Thoughts
On one hand, I can say “some great things are worth the wait.” After 25 years, we finally get to hear the release that Impulse Nine is capable of. On the other hand, it has me wishing there was more to listen to.
That’s the good and bad thing about storytelling. Nothing beats hearing a story for the first time, but we can only hear something for the first time once. Then we can choose to relive it, retell it, and experience it over again. Sometimes, in those moments where we revisit art, the complexities offered give us new ways to see, hear, or otherwise “feel” it. Sometimes we are the ones who adapt as we find meanings through the changes within ourselves.
Impulse Nine takes his audience on a journey. Nothing is Easy is an album that took 25 years to produce and in some ways, it comes through in the music. Songs that stem from the tragedy of loss can be heard. The stages of grief can be felt. The triumph to rise about our vulnerability. It’s all there and the beautiful thing is, Impulse Nine’s diverse talent tells us this without singing or speaking a single word. It’s in the vibrance of each song he tells his tale. The melodies, the ambient moods.
I’m not sure if my relationship with my father has any similarity to Impulse Nine’s relationships with his father, mother, or step father. They don’t have to. His music brought back memories I have of my lost fathers, just as I’m sure his memories overwhelmed him as he composed it.
I’m glad my father got to hear my debut. I’m glad my father-in-law got to hear me sing once. I wish they were both here to hear what I’m doing now. I think this is something Impulse Nine could definitely relate to. The joy knowing that they got to hear music from this project and the grief of wishing they could have heard the final realized vision of it.
It’s bittersweet, but Impulse Nine can hopefully take the consolation of knowing that there are listeners who will listen and grow from the music he’s produced. It is influential. It is compassionate. It has overwhelming depth. He should be very proud.
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Additional Media:
Listen to Nothing is Easy:
Fifteen Minutes of Fame Music Entertainment 
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