Album of the week : Wand - ‘Vertigo’

LA’s Wand is a band that hasn’t stuck with one direction, and on this brand new (stunning) release, they’ve made another twist and a giant leap into a whole new dimension of songwriting and musicianship. It’s music that grabs ahold of the listener and takes over the mood.

As opening track ‘Vertigo’ kicked in on my first listen, my mind started doing the thing that I always try to avoid with listening to music; comparison. Ah! Some heavy tremolo guitar ala Spacemen 3, an emotive and interesting vocal melody ala Radiohead, and some sparse but precise drumming. It led me to first think this was the kind of record that is pleasant and enjoyable to listen to, but gets filed away and maybe not even listened to again. I was VERY wrong!

As ‘Hangman’ graciously slid into ‘Curtain Call’ before I realized it was the next song, I was instantly overcome with the feeling of this album being an artistic triumph that will demand several listens to fully absorb.

The musicianship is extraordinary here; Evan Burrows drumming is especially noteworthy. The rhythms vary from steady and hypnotic to extremely unexpected / creative, and in one case adding an extra element to the song that feels complimentary to the vocal (‘Lifeboat’). Cory Hanson’s vocals are incredibly expressive here and oozing unique and compelling melodies. The guitars and keyboards create a moody, sonic landscape. It all adds up to the feeling of creative minds working closely together for the benefit of the song and performance. Heady, inspiring stuff!

This is a great album to play for anyone who makes the (incorrect) statement that guitar based rock music is dead.