King Of The Beach, 2010
After
a few tours, leaked tracks and a brief tease of a possible album ‘Babes’, a
collaboration between Nathan Williams and Zach Hill- indie’s favourite drummer known
for his erratic style of drumming (which coincides unusually well with Williams’
laidback style) and most notably known for math rock duo Hella and industrial
hip hop group Death Grips, it was evident that the indie world’s demand for
Wavves was at an all-time high. However, Nathan and Zach’s brief stint was
short-lived and the duo’s anticipated album was cancelled.
However,
the disappointment at the collab’s annulment was also short-lived; by November
2009 the Wavves line-up had been updated - following what fans and critics dub
the “Primavera Meltdown” during their disastrous set at Spain's Primavera Sound
Festival in 2009, whereby a combination of intoxication, difficult soundcheck,
foul moods and growingly impatient crowd resulted in the pelting of shoes and
bottles, the onstage resignation of pissed off drummer Ryan Ulsch, a resignation
which, to uproarious applause from the audience, also featured the drummer
pouring his beer over Nathan Williams head, and subsequently, the cancellation
of their European tour. The new line-up consisted of drummer Billy Hayes and
bassist Stephen Pope, formerly of the late Jay Reatard’s garage band; the new
line-up sparked the hopes of a possible new album.
Those hopes were
fulfilled when in August of 2010, their third album, ‘King of the Beach’ was
released on Fat Possum Records. This new Wavves album displayed the most
radical change compared to their last two albums, most notably in production:
this was Wavves first studio-produced album; a ballsy move given the reputation
their scuzzy DIY production had earned them. This album’s cleaner production,
courtesy of Modest Mouse producer Dennis Herring, really brings a lot of
clarity to the songs, accentuating the hooks and each component of the songs-
punchy bass, huge drums and William’s trebly, maxed-out guitar and vocals
shining through; ergo eliminating the issue the last two albums had and
allowing the listener to distinguish each song instead of each one blending
into a scuzzy, raspy haze. Although the album’s production method strayed from
Wavves’ first two records, to the relief of Wavves fans- although cleaner, this
album’s sound did not stray far from the unkempt noise pop, and experimentalist
aesthetic they had come to expect of the SoCal band. Lyrically, Williams
displays marginally more sophisticated songwriting, although the approach isn’t
anything too artsy and ambiguous, there is power in its directness. KOTB still
features the same coming-of-age themes of apathy and self-loathing that are
prominent on the tracks that veer towards the 90s pop punk side of the Wavves
spectrum – tracks such as ‘Idiot’, ‘Post Acid’ and ‘Take On The World’, as well
as the Williams’ brighter, sunnier side, with constant references to going to
the beach, (as if the album title wasn’t obvious enough) in the song ‘King of
the Beach’, and smoking weed (think the THC-infused ‘Linus Spacehead’).
The
album is home to the most all-out ballsy tracks such as ‘Green Eyes’, an anthem
of self-loathing and apathy that is testament to Williams’ almost poetic
bluntness in his songwriting, ‘Post Acid’ a straight up trippy ode to doing
drugs and having fun; yet it also features a more varied style in the Wavves
catalogue, with tracks ditching the whole “guitar, bass and drums” thing in
favour of synthesizers and drum machines on the tracks ‘Mickey Mouse’, an anxiety-based
almost orchestral track featuring a plethora of synthesized brass instruments; ‘Baseball
Cards’, a swirling, hypnotizing track with phasing synths, ‘sha la las’ and finger snaps; and ‘When Will You
Come’, although my least favourite track on the album, a more Beach
Boys-influenced, breezy track which includes Williams’ falsetto vocals, bells
and tambourine taps.
Overall,
my favourite Wavves album, the most refined album at that point, and the one
that definitely outlines Wavves’ “Blink-182 meets Beach Boys” aesthetic that is
commonly associated with them and holds up even today.
