IZZY HELTAI & GENTLE TEMPER

IZZY HELTAI

• FOLK
• SINGER/SONGWRITER

If aliens came to earth, Izzy Heltai would describe his debut album, Father, to them this way: “There are frequencies that are going to feel like clanking, that maybe you’ll enjoy sonically. There are words strung together to sound nice. They are about an important human trajectory when one goes from a child to a slightly more serious child called an adult.”

His new music is the product and reflection of the broad spectrum of music Izzy enjoys listening to. From his love of pop, analog electronic, to country, Izzy loves blending elements of genres to create his own unique take on what a folk song is.

The child of two mathematicians, Izzy showed little interest in numbers, science, or academia. Luckily, his parents adjusted. His mom took him to lilac festivals, ballets, and Newport Folk Festival back when kids tickets were $20.

Izzy’s mother is Italian; she loves opera and 60’s female folk singers. His father is Hungarian; and Izzy still isn’t really sure what he does for work. His sister is a socialist who works for Haymarket books, which has quite a Twitter presence.

When asked to summarize his style in three words, Izzy responded “everyday queer trash.” He has tattoos, a pierced ear, a pretty shitty mustache, and bleach blond tips. He cuffs his pants, and wears his t-shirts tucked into his light wash jeans. But he believes he leads a moral life over an aesthetic life. When asked if he would give his life for all of the art in the Met, he said no. When asked if he would give his life for other people, he said yes.

Izzy works primarily in his friend Andy Cass’s studio in Williamsburg, MA, where he recorded the entirety of his debut album Father and his new singles. Izzy plays acoustic guitar and sings on his recordings. He is joined by Garrett Salazar on drums, Andy Cass on bass, and Micah Katz-Zeiger on everything else. Izzy’s producer, Max Shakun (Parsonsfield), lovingly coins Micah as their swiss army knife, “because he plays literally everything else”. Since Father was released in September 2020, Izzy has moved from a folk sound to a blend of pop, indie, and classic rock.

He resides in a valley, in western Massachusetts, in a town called Easthampton. He lives alone, and is not in a relationship. He loves biking and most of his time is focused on work and making drum loops in his bedroom.