Wild Nothing at The Workman’s Club on the 1st of December 2012

The Workman’s Club hosted American group Wild Nothing on Saturday, a band who have provided us with one of the year’s finest albums in ‘Nocturne’.  Sleep Thieves were the support and they impressed with their tight performance, and especially with the exceptional vocals of frontwoman Sorcha Brennan.

Wild Nothing opened with Shadow, a song with a catchy riff and a brilliant bassline and this set the scene for the night. The delicate vocals and mellow keyboards are held in place by the strong basslines. Beautiful riffs emerge throughout the whole night for our listening pleasure. Only Heather featured a gorgeous chorus, with swirling guitars and ghostly ‘oohs’ echoing around the gentle vocals. Frustratingly, the angelic riff of Nocturne was drowned out by the other instruments at the start of the song, but this was rectified towards the end, and the amazing outro was one of the highlights of the night. The Blue Dress was a little different, the mean bassline adding a more sinister tone than any of the other tunes. Paradise was a little slower, and gave a more important role to the synths, before moving into an epic instrumental section.

The main problem facing bands that are fond of this hazy indistinct sound, is that dreamy can easily become dreary. Wild Nothing border on the dull several times during the night, especially with a few tracks from the first album such as Confirmation.  However, there’s always enough there to keep you listening, whether it’s the twinkling guitars or a catchy chorus. Importantly the band know when to change the direction of a song just when your interest begins to wane, and they avoid playing two of these below-par songs in a row.

The song that stole the show though was the outstanding Summer Holiday, the one song with a true sing-along chorus. From the opening strains to the final chord, it feels like you’re transported to another world. The chiming guitars are perfectly complimented by the sophisticated bassline, and the chorus sounds amazing no matter if it’s sung as a drunken bellow from the back of the crowd or from Jack Tatum himself. The fabulous breakdown and cooing backing vocals make this brilliant song even better. Overall the band’s second album is superior to the first, but this song is the best tune the band can ever hope to write.

Wild Nothing are a tidy act whose dreamy songs manage to create a hazy atmosphere that leaves you feeling strangely contented. While a few tracks are a little bland and samey, there is more than enough good tunes to compensate for the duller ones, and Summer Holiday is simply amazing.

 

Wild Nothing Photo Gallery

Photos: Alessio Michelini