'Ello strangers!
A friend of mine took me to a gig last night, at Cambridge's Portland Arms. It's a small venue, and the burgers are good.
I was there to see The Wave Pictures. No, me neither. But they're excellent. A 3 piece - guitar/vocals, drums, bass. Everyone does a bit of singing. Imagine the White Stripes, but web designers.
The lyrics are obscure, mundane, narrative, descriptive, poetic - delivered in a style which reminds me (incorrectly, probably) of the Decemberists, or Bright Eyes. There's an obvious love of older guitar music of the 50s and 60s.
The lead singer/guitarist is a fuck-off good player. (Is this a music theory term? Must investigate)
There's melodic, percussive, dynamic phrasing that's played in that lazy-yet-devilish way that Mark Knopfler has - and all played with a new Fender Duo-Sonic into an old Fender Sidekick Reverb 25 amp with no reverb, pedals or effects to help or hinder. (I get the impression that Fender have been throwing Duo-Sonics at any touring band that stands still long enough recently.)
They're near the beginning of a tour of the UK - have a look here
http://www.thewavepictures.com/webpages/homeandnews.htm - so go and check them out if you want a gig to go to in the coming week or three.
Comments
He's a great player. His lead playing has the spirit of Neil Young.
They have a new album out today as well. On a quick listen to a couple of tracks it seems a bit more refined to CF.
I'm hoping to catch them on this tour now - thanks for the heads up.
I love this video I think it's their Dad's acting in it!
They've been around for years and have quite a few albums.
JM build | Pedalboard plans
I forgot to talk about that. Everything about them is the antithesis of rockstar. They seem happy in their own skins and content (and secure enough) to be ordinary and fun on stage. They have, as yer man above put it, unpretentious charm.
And that's sort of the last taboo of being a band. I, too, found that, perhaps more than the guitar playing and the music, inspiring and infectious.
I also came home and bypassed my entire pedalboard. Back-to-basics inspiration FTW!
They released an album last month.
https://youtu.be/451BKlZxZm4
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=BGP6LNRp0A4