New York-based singer-songwriter, and actor, Henry Crater is back with impermanent, his first music release since 2023. The five-song EP feels big and polished but stays personal at the same time, walking listeners through the highs and lows of a breakup.
Crater says, “Songwriting has always been an irreplaceable part of my identity. I’ve always been a very sensitive and emotional person, and I wrote songs to cope with the difficult emotions I felt in high school and college.”
The EP opens with the title track. It’s a short 61-second piano driven intro where Crater sings about learning to “let go.” From there, the songs trace the stages of moving on. “despondent” faces the first shock of a love that’s ended. “dry eyes” jumps out with funky horns and an upbeat groove, showing off Crater’s lighter side. “still” slows things down, capturing the ache of missing someone. The closer, “every breath i take,” ends the ride on a warm, sentimental note. Its music video, filmed in New York City by director Jared Zuker, adds extra layers of emotion to the goodbye and gives depth to the story behind the song.
Crater’s music mixes theater drama with modern pop and jazz, drawing on influences like Jacob Collier and Jason Robert Brown. He fronts the NYC band Cereal Monogamy and writes musicals, including Einstein of Love, but here he focuses on a simple idea: everything changes.
The EP brings together 14 friends and collaborators, many from Crater’s University of Michigan days. Guest singers Owen G. Scales, Kate Cummings, and Ian Coursey each add their own style, while Crater handles the keys. Producer Thomas Giberson and orchestrator Anna Elaine Rosengart help give the record its rich, full sound.
impermanent is smooth, heartfelt, and easy to listen to—a reminder that nothing lasts forever, and that’s okay.