When you have a guitarist that looks like Crispin Glover from Back to the Future in your band, that can only be a magic thing. Especially when he has spidery like fingers that can wring 100 notes a second out of the instrument. White Denim are lucky enough to have such a guitarist (with such 1950’s style), as well as three other members who are equally talented (dressed normally).
As a complete unit, this group are a non-stop rock machine, mixing as many influences from the history of rock as they possibly can. Sometimes into one song. It’s like on Master Chef when someone is like “hey I’m going to mix Caribbean and French cuisine then throw on some Russian spices and Japanese seaweed”. You think “NO”…. and then it works out well. Totally solid bass mixes together with an Eagles-like guitar line on one track, whilst later on we have some Pink Floyd style groove and freak outs mixed with calypso percussion.
It’s these 70s FM rock and even (dare I say) prog influences that surprise the most. We have some Rush style bass sounds, and even some Steve Hackett (from, um, Genesis…) style guitar lines at one point. But White Denim avoid falling into the pit of self indulgence by carefully crafting some abrupt time signature changes, some howlin’ blues vocals and, most importantly, catchy hooks.
It seems impossible to use these two words in the same sentence, but White Denim somehow pull off the trick of combining prog, with punk. They have the raw energy and edge of punks and proto-punks like The Sonics, and also have the ability to improvise lavish introductions and mid-section instrumentals to their songs without being boring. A skill that helps them when the PA cuts out and they have to survive on the sound of their guitar amps alone.
Despite this setback, the PA comes back on, and White Denim play on to complete their epic two hour set. It’s like a non-tiresome lecture on the history of guitar music, smashed out with vigourous energy by the Texan four piece. With Crispin Glover shredding in the corner. What’s not to like?
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