This is Pale Waves.
They are quickly becoming one of the most interesting and talked about bands of 2018.
Earlier this year they were top 5 finalists in BBC's New Sound of 2018.
So far in their short careers they have sell out tours, millions of streams and a cultishly
loyal fanbase. They could be your next big musical obsession.
But here's the thing: the band are splitting opinions across the board for one simple reason.
Pale Waves are unoriginal. Or at least that's the criticism. That they are just taking the
best bits of sad British 80s pop and throwing up uninspired facsimiles.
Their sound incorporates bits of The Cure, Tears For Fears, the Cocteau Twins
and The Smiths, all wrapped up in bubblegoth clothing.
But the other way to look at this is this: Pale Waves are a breath of fresh air,
being one of the few guitar-centric acts to breakthrough in the last couple of years.
For those that are keeping track, this is important.
That nostalgic sound is to be welcomed in an era dominated
by synthetic pop and an over-abundance of Drake.
But what's the deal? Are Pale Waves Simply A Pale Copy of the 80s?
Pale Waves formed after a chance meeting between drummer Ciara Doran and vocalist, songwriter
Heather Baron-Gracie in a Manchester late-night off-license. The two quickly became inseparable,
and spent the next two years hanging out and intermittently writing songs.
They then enlisted bassist Charlie Wood and second guitarist Hugo Silvani to move their endeavours from
bedroom-based pipedream to functional band.
Taking influence from the darker, dreamier side of 80s pop music, the foursome recorded
some demos including future singles 'The Tide' and 'Heavenly', catching the attention of
indie label Dirty Hit. The label had previous success with Wolf Alice, The Japanese House
and The 1975. The connection to the latter has flavoured Pale Waves career ever since,
having toured extensively with the indie pop group, as well as having their first two singles
produced by The 1975's frontman Matt Healy.
Pale Waves released their debut EP 'ALL THE THINGS I NEVER SAID' in February.
But what about that contentious sound. Their uptight bass work and jangly yet swooning
guitars mark them out as something remarkably different in today's musical climate.
The band pull ideas from the past and mix them together
to create something greater than the sum of its parts.
Just listen to 'My Obsession', a mix of 'Just Like Heaven' guitar mixed over a 'Boys of Summer' skeleton.
You can almost hear the cassette deck whirl.
But Pale Waves are far from the first band this decade to crib copiously from the 1980s.
Just over the last few years we've had bands like Haim whose output is a genius synthesis
of Thriller-era RN'B and Fleetwood Mac.
And Chvrches whose career seems to just be a modern update of 80s synth-pop
like New Order and especially Depeche Mode.
Probably the most assured melding of 80s influence is in Pale Waves' mentors The 1975.
Songs like 'Somebody Else' are a satisfying melting pot of Tears for Fears and soundtrack behemoths
Tangerine Dream.
And their not the only ones: Foals, Paramore, Tegan and Sara and even Carly Rae Jepsen have
taken bits and pieces of that decade and incorporated it into their sound.
Recreating the 80s is very on trend at the moment; just look at the success of IT, Stranger
Things and Glow. This has a fair bit to do with what's know as the Thirty Year Cycle.
Simply put, it takes about 30 years for the youth of any era to become the driving force
of media production. As Patrick Metzger states in his article: The Nostalgia Pendulum: A
Rolling 30-Year Cycle of Pop Culture Trends
This is why Back to the Future goes back to the 1950s and the Wonder Years reminisces
about the 60s. But here's the thing: Pale Waves aren't old enough to have lived through
the 80s the first time around. They are making this music, not as nostalgic shadow, but because
these are the influences they have grown up with. With the online availability of music,
any era can be your sonic adolescence.
Is it a bad thing? No, they are adding historical layers of texture to their shimmering pop nuggets.
All music is influenced by other music. Just because a band is taking a look
backwards doesn't mean that they don't have a future.
Iconic Radio DJ John Peel once said about first hearing The Smiths:
Most other bands need that introductory learning period
where they haven't quite got their sound worked out. If you listen to Nirvana's
Bleach, it's way darker and more confrontational than what would make them famous on Nevermind.
Bass heavy songs like 'Blew' sound almost identical to the Melvins,
one of the bands that Kurt looked up to in his local scene.
Even The Cure when they started sounded like a jumbled mess
of their punk rock inspirations than their own band.
Pale Waves are now at the beginning of their musical careers, so of course their influences
are still very obvious and surface-level. They are a talented young band, currently
buoyanted by a wave of hype and expectation. Their debut full-length is still to be released.
With a little more time they will build on their sound and become a little less 80s band,
and a little more Pale Waves.
But right now, just enjoy what they've done so far and be very excited
for what is to come.
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