Album of the Week: Where Wildness Grows by Gengahr
Mariella Bevan breaks down the album of the week. This week, it’s the latest album from indie rock band Gengahr.
Gengahr, whose name pays homage to the band’s favourite Pokémon character, took the indie music scene by storm in 2015 with the release of their widely acclaimed first album ‘A Dream Outside’. Support for the band snowballed after Huw Stephens played the track ‘Fill My Gums With Blood’ on his late night show. From there, Gengahr’s upbeat guitar pop was filling festival stages and the band have begun to establish their name in the British indie music scene. Back once again with their second album ‘Where Wildness Grows’, the quirky four-piece have a lot to live up to.
Giving us a first look into the new album, Gengahr released the single ‘Carrion’ late last year. It begins with a slow building, ominous sound which quickly transitions into a melancholy rock tune, featuring sharper vocals and more powerful guitar than usual. The opening track ‘Before Sunrise’ shows Felix Bushe’s recognisable falsetto taking front and centre alongside dreamy guitar sounds. The song sets up a summery and laid-back atmosphere for the record which continues on the second song ‘Mallory’. Although this song has a punchier cadence than the previous one, it still feels colourful and upbeat compared to the darker ‘Carrion’, which as a first single does not seem representative of the rest of the album.
Also similar to the opening track is the gorgeous ‘Pull Over (Now)’, which has a pleasantly magical unreality to it that is complemented nicely by Bushe’s voice, even as the song builds and the guitar becomes more prominent. This does not work on every song though, with the vocals being drowned out by the instrumentals at certain points. For example, on the song ‘Is This How You Love’, the falsetto fades into the background at the heaviest points, almost as if it is an afterthought to the melody. However, both this song and ‘Pull Over (Now)’ begin in an innovative way, starting off muffled and slowly getting clearer as if the listener is opening a door to their concert and the music is getting closer.
‘I’ll Be Waiting’ explores a more varied sound, channelling a Jake Bugg-esque nasality with the vocals and an infectious drum beat, whilst ‘Burning Air’ takes a more powerful rock sound, the fuzzy guitar reminiscent of 90’s garage rock. The title track, ‘Where Wildness Grows’, takes a slower approach, with simple arrangement to begin with, bringing in the drums in a slow but effective crescendo that makes it one of the more memorable tracks on the record. The final moment of the album is also one of its finest; ‘Whole Again’ has an explosive opener, in a starkly different way to the opening track. This gives John Victor his chance to shine with a satisfying guitar solo as the song comes to an abrupt end.
Throughout the album, Gengahr prove they have range and versatility that is better showcased here than on their first album. The beginning and the end of the record prove that they can be both tranquil and powerful, executing each well. Some say the second album is the hardest, but Gengahr have shown that theirs was well worth the wait.
Article: Mariella Bevan
URY Music Editor: Alex Sheriff
