DRUNKENWEREWOLF

With two acclaimed full lengths under his belt, Jack Tatum (a.k.a. Wild Nothing) manages to progress further with each recording; the dreamy lo-fi of 2010’s Gemini giving way to the more beat heavy affair of 2013’s Nocturne, with few people batting an eyelid. In keeping with this preference of evolution and progression, his latest EP Empty Estate sees him push his own boundaries once again – moving on to almost unrecognisable plains and dabbling in a ludicrous amount of genres with interesting, albeit somewhat challenging, results.

Written and recorded over mere ten-day period in January, Tatum reportedly immersed himself in the work of Brian Eno and David Bowie for weeks beforehand. As a result, Empty Estate bears witness the mix of ambient, powerful pop music for which the Bowie/Eno team were famed. With its tracks awash with synthesised effects and drone, this is a far cry from any of Wild Nothing’s early material; a study in experimentation as opposed to formula, it’s a unique and emboldened new work.

Starting as it by no means wishes to continue, the EP begins with the more pop centred tracks “The Body in Rainfall” and “Ocean Repeating (Big-Eyed Girl)”: the former a pulsating synthesiser and piano-lead number, the latter mixing hazy electronic and math-pop expertly- even if the lyrical refrain of, “She’s my big-eyed girl” is somewhat grating: ‘big-eyed’?

It’s as this “***-Eyed Girl” ends that we start getting into the Bowie/Eno side of things. The rest of the record is laden with ambient noise, the results excellent after a few listens but would benefit from the level of production that its forebears enjoyed. To have this level of production expertise and recording expenses is obviously unrealistic for an artist at Wild Nothing’s level, but there are parts that need an extra push to get them from interesting to incredible.

Minor quibbles aside, this is an excellent effort from an artist whose material never fails to impress. The songs are of a high standard throughout- the throbbing, industrial beats of “Data World” and the dream-like instrumentals of “On Guyot” are particularly compelling and effective. It’s a record in which he departs from his previous LP with the same confidence as he departed from the one before that; his imagination, restlessness and creative zeal are fast becoming exceptional.

Release: 20th May 2013, Bella Union

Bristolian quintet Coasts wear their hometown quite prominently on their sleeves, alongside their love of summer, sand and the same carefully timed guitar spun alt-rock that one would find in Bombay Bicycle Club, The Kooks or Two Door Cinema Club, only with its own unique current. Their debut EP Paradise comes off of Tidal Records, with hardcore devotees and occasional blog post doing little justice to these well crafted four tracks that have a big future ahead of them.

“Oceans” is a seaside love affair that lists every salt laden detail in its lyrics. There’s an easy to grasp youthful familiarity in the story, and the commendable production compliments it. From this track alone you get the impression that the boys in Coasts have a decent understanding of constructing music as a whole, from the plodding guitar to the rise and crash of the song’s tempo. As the band’s first single it’s a shame it didn’t garner more radio spot plays, even if it did go down a storm on YouTube.

Following on, “Wallow” is a shift to something more contemplative, with the long build up and break into a louder chorus shows consideration for potential live show excitement. The guitar takes on a wailing quality to seemingly match song writing that superbly captures the frustration of banality, a subject their intended youthful fans are no doubt most familiar with. The audience itself is one the band likewise have an awareness of, mixing in what must be a wealth of influences for the more dance friendly track “Your Soul”, or the EP finale dripping in atmosphere that is “Stone”.

Of all the potential modern stabs at indie, Coasts bring something fun and fresh to the table. You’ve certainly heard their sound before, but in Paradise it’s tailor fashioned to your pop culture and summer soaked sweat loving ears. If you consider yourself a lifeguard of sorts who strives to save bands from obscurity, then you better keep your eyes on these guys.

Release: 29th April 2013, Tidal Records

There exists a sort of limbo made up of bands straddling two generations. Bands stuck in this limbo are forever destined to play English county pubs whilst 25 people and a dog look on sipping their pints. Unfortunately, aside from getting a real job, there aren’t many ways for these damned souls to escape their hellish purgatory.

As soon as eponymous song “Three Ships (Disappear Here)” unfurls its sails you’ll be cataloguing Theatre Royal as a band not worth wasting brain cells remembering. Stick in there if only for a minute or so. There’s a certain swagger about the opening track that, whilst you may not respect it, you kind of secretly admire. Like a drunken love letter crooned outside your prospective Juliet’s balcony after a night down the local.

It’s a shame to say that it all goes a little downhill from there. The trouble is that Theatre Royal try to appear more meaningful and introspective than they truly are. Instead they come across as musically contrived and clunky, with some unwieldy words stuffing too many syllables into a line of lyrics. “Learning How to Be Idle” stands as the perfect example, as their songwriter tries to cram every one of the self-defacing one liners they’ve thought up over the years into three and a half minutes. When the band goes acoustic with “Katherine’s Sleeping” you’ll be reminded of that friend you have who says they write their own songs and play guitar at open mic nights, better than you expected, but wilfully deluding themselves if they think they’ll ever make it past their town’s taverns.

By the end of this EP we’re back up to a full band for a little of late Manic Street Preachers rock. Easy on the ear and counted among many a guilty pleasure collection for the young, but pride of place in the tape deck of your parents car.

Release: 15th April 2013, Self-release