You Can Be My Wave

Will Wiesenfeld follows up last year's excellent Gut with a short collection of tracks he deems to be Negative Pop(?) Songs. The tags are fairly apt as the meditative structures and simple, frank refrains allow for easy access into the production and lyrical themes. Although, the exploration into toxic and depressive character traits, along with some adventurously bold sonic textures does introduce a bit more of a challenge than your standard pop tune. I was lucky to see Wiesenfeld perform two of these tracks on a recent tour prior to their release. Even though I was looking forward to hearing the highlights from Gut, the new material still got me hype for the future. Now that these songs are officially out, I'm further convinced that Gut wasn't a flash in the pan, and that Wiesenfeld is tapped into a left-field pop sound that I'm hungrily craving.

The EP kicks off with Wrecker, a euphoric dance track that shares similar vibes to one of my favourite Gut tracks, Eden. It has a fairly steady beat but the synths are quite jittery, creating a lot of intricate, rarely repeated rhythmic patterns. Over this, Wiesenfeld delivers an alluring, boyish performance as he entices a married man into an affair. He recycles the same verse over again, but it's the final attempt where Wiesenfeld turns his performance up to a desperate belt. I also love the way the final “I can be your way out,” morphs into a frustrated scream before being harshly cut off by the beat drop.

By comparison, Yumyucker is a much looser, viscous, and cavernous track that features industrially-tinged, skittering percussion and deep, resonant bass. The latter of which is sometimes so pronounced that when played on the right system, could cause a loss in structural integrity. Lyrically, Wiesenfeld questions how someone could have such a negative perception of the world, employing some truly warped vocal effects, nasally falsettos, and more unsettling screams in the process. One small detail that I love is when the track is momentarily derailed by a sound I can only describe as a 'power down' chime; the sonic equivalent of sucking all the wind out one's sails. Yumyucker stretches the pop tag the furthest, but the bold production is fascinating and the progression in the severity of the sounds is thrilling.

Lastly, we have The Fawn, which is a much more low key, elegant, yet deeply depressing ballad. In so many words, Wiesenfeld paints the portrait of a profoundly lonely person who struggles to find support, comfort, and companionship in a cruel world. If I can make an odd musical comparison, the main riff on this track reminds me of the work of Wes Borland because of the clean, muted quality of the guitar sound. There's also a subtle tweeze in the pitch carried by a delay effect that almost mimics the Limp Bizkit guitarist's signature strike of the whammy bar. It's the longest, most atmospheric track, and it's certainly not as energetic or as challenging as the previous two tracks. However, Wiesenfeld's stunning musicality is more clearly on display.

While I was expecting these tracks to land on Baths' next full-length record, I'm happy Wiesenfeld opted to release this short EP. Wrecker and Yumyucker have quickly become two of my favourite Baths songs. Both are starkly different, with the former being a dancefloor rager while the latter is a molten experiment, yet they are both overstimulating in the best way possible. Ending with The Fawn provides a much needed cool down moment that still manages to grip with its unabashed vulnerability. In just three songs, I feel like Wiesenfeld beautifully showcased every facet of his sound, something even the most established artists struggle to do on a full-length project.