Wild Meadows are a Melbourne-based quintet who have well and truly enjoyed the reemergence of shoegaze music spinning through Australia.
Now with the release of their newest, self-titled record, they firm up their place in the genre’s canon for years to come.
Where more conventional shoegaze would lift you on a cloud of warm effects, Wild Meadows hook listeners in with a tugging rhythm, irresistibly etched in fuzz.
By all classic definitions, it’s easy to understand why the world (not to mention the band themselves) have Wild Meadows pinned as another shoegaze throwback outfit. What’s often missed is their subtle but distinguishing factor, a willingness to rewrite what has worked in the past in favour of something new.
Most distinctly it’s the band’s use of distortion, fuzz, and your other gritty effects. The aptly named Feel The Noise is a place to hear this, as are Fever and Stay For A While. It drenches the record in light and shade, a cycle of night and day you can’t help but follow blindly.
Currently Wild Meadows is Jessica Lawrence (vocals), James Ross (vocals/guitar), Dylan Bird (guitar), Donovan Pill (bass) and drummer Peter Giannoukas, who joined the band after the album sessions. Wild Meadows was recorded, mixed and produced by Paul ‘Woody’ Annison at Red Door Sounds, and mastered by William Bowden.
It’s a serious cohort, but feeds happily into the full-house sound this band crafts. Silence is a rare indulgence on this album, but I guarantee you won’t miss it.
An escape to new realms and higher places, Wild Meadows is a stunning debut record from a band who, more than anything, have found their place. Rewriting the rulebook on a genre so many fans will fiercely defend is no small effort, but this Victorian five-piece seem to have pulled it off with ease.
Expect big things for Wild Meadows, that’s a promise. Until then, catch them live at any of the dates below:
Saturday 7th April – Yah Yahs, Melbourne VIC
Friday 20th April – Oxford Art Factory, Sydney NSW
They’ll also be playing a Wednesday residency at The Tote in Melbourne all through May.
Wild Meadows is now available digitally and on vinyl.
