Oh What a Love: The Perfect Storm Channel Vintage Vibes and Alt-Rock Warmth on “We Fell in Love”

"The Perfect Storm"

The Perfect Storm aren’t shy about wearing their hearts—or their harmonies—on their sleeves. On their newest single, “We Fell in Love,” the Albany-based alt-pop trio lean into vulnerability with open arms and a sound that bridges the tender tones of doo-wop romance with indie rock’s modern pulse.

From the very first line—“She grew up way too fast, whoa-a oh oh”—you’re thrust into a bittersweet coming-of-age snapshot, sung with the kind of wide-eyed wonder that doesn’t flinch from honesty. There’s something disarmingly sincere about the way front man James Krakat delivers each lyric, like he’s remembering a love story he never expected to be a part of. “I didn’t think that I was even in her class,” he admits in the opening verse, instantly dismantling any cool-kid posturing in favor of something far more real.

The chorus is where the magic lands—hard and fast. “But there, there she was / I, I saw her / We fell in love / Oh what a love.” It’s not complicated, and that’s the point. The Perfect Storm aren’t aiming for irony; they’re aiming for connection. And it hits like a sunbeam through a cracked window—soft, sudden, and unforgettable.

Instrumentally, the track fuses lo-fi warmth with alt-rock edge. Kirtoglou’s drumming is subtle yet locked-in, and Ethan Lynch’s basslines move like a heartbeat beneath the harmony. The song’s standout flair, though, is its “sha na na na na” refrain—a deliberate nod to pop’s golden age, yet spun with the kind of indie cred that wouldn’t feel out of place on a playlist with Wallows, The 1975, or early Death Cab.

“We Fell in Love” is tailor-made for slow dances in dim basements, for mixtapes passed between friends, for that specific ache of realizing this is the moment. There’s a retro soul in its bones, but the production—clean, dynamic, just the right amount of polish—places it firmly in the now. It’s the kind of song that’s more emotional memory than sonic experiment, and it’s stronger for it.

The final chorus circles back like a heartbeat—reassuring, familiar, true:  

“Sha na na na na na / We fell in love / Sha na na na na na / Oh what a love.”

The Perfect Storm aren’t just singing about falling in love—they’re inviting you to remember how it felt. To relive it. To believe in it again.

And in a world where alt-rock too often hides behind detachment, that kind of vulnerability? That’s punk as hell. 

–Jim Grant