The Breakdown
The Wonder have just released their new EP entitled ‘Pop’ and it certainly does what it says on the label: delivering five indelible tracks that are positively ripe with melody and stature and threaded through, as any good pop songs are, an air of gently melancholy.
The band are an international group consisting of Australian vocalist and guitarist Matt Davis – who is also a founding member of Melbourne rock band Gersey – with Parisian artists Alexandre Gontard (bass), Nico Defeudis (guitar), Milan Zuidema (keys and backup vocals), and Fulvio Serpone on drums.
Opening track ‘Listen To The Radio’ is a sparkling entry to the EP: shimmering riffs and delicate harmonies feature in a brilliant delivered indie pop classic, with more than a touch of Belle And Sebastian. It’s anthemic and heart racing stuff laced with a yearning melancholy. Davis says of the track:
‘Listen to the Radio’ is a song about the dream of starting this band. Take the first verse:
The lonely streets
The midnight beat
As you strive to get your
Name in lights
That is about going to my little studio every night to work on songs and how difficult it was to begin. But! Then a word from the future:
Listen to the radio… it’s me, singing to you from beyond the tides.
The song is about following our dreams, even though it can be hard at times. You never know what can happen if you just keep going.
‘I Don’t Want To Come Down’ which has all the glittering hallmarks of an indie pop classic with its guitar-driven focus and melancholy delivery. There are detectable in its genes the sounds of bands like Interpol, The National and The Killers which is in itself a recommendation enough, but there is an unique sound that seems to blend the Antipodean with the Gallic, creating a delectable anthem.
The lyrics are enigmatic and spiritual like a sermon from the pulpit, delivered in Davis’s sonorous vocals:
I, was once the light
In your fair eyes
I was once the find of your life
But it is not time
For Gods and men
And I for one don’t mind
Davis explores the influences and discusses the development of the song with the band:
I wrote the chords and rhythm to ‘I Don’t Want to Come Down’ very quickly. After writing a few slower, more meandering songs I was ready to write something faster and more direct. I was thinking about songs like Red Eyes by The War on Drugs, Bloodbuzz Ohio by The National and even a little bit of PDA by Interpol. Songs that grab you and won’t let go.
I actually wrote the lyrics to this song twice. I finished a demo version and sent it to my friend Nick Huggins (Dirty Three, Jen Cloher) to mix it for me. While I was waiting for him to mix it, I had a sudden realisation that they were the wrong lyrics. I’m not a religious person, but for some reason I suddenly imagined the song being sung by Jesus Christ. He was lamenting the mess we had made of Earth. I don’t know where this idea came from, but it drove me to rewrite the song from his perspective. He doesn’t want to come back down here, because of the terrible mess we’ve made, but the response line “Get your head out of the clouds”, means that perhaps things aren’t as bad as he thinks. Maybe things are as they are meant to be.
For me this song is made by Alex’s bass line in the instrumental part in the middle of the song. Once I heard that I knew we had something. And the highlight probably is Milan singing the line above, “Get your head out of the clouds” with a perfect mix of anger and disdain.
It’s a perfect combination of many influences and sounds – creating something quite special and indelible.
The track comes with an immersive video shot in black and white directed by French film director Salma Cheddadi in the calm reverence of the Eglise Saint-Ambroise: adding to the ethereal nature of the song.
‘All These Things To Be’ presses lightly on the brake pedal: a haunting atmospheric track with Davis’s vocals muted and enigmatic over brooding, swirling instruments and delicate harmonies. ‘Bones of Clarity’ similarly has a steady, dreamy pace with dappling instrumentation with an added scaling anthemic chorus.
Final track ‘Bathtub in the Rain’ jangles with a shimmering soundtrack with beautiful evocative imagery that reveals Davis’s romantic yearnings that are heart achingly beautiful. The outro is an epic cinematic finale, expansive and shimmering like stars in the firmament, glittering and eye wateringly ethereal.
This is a stunning tour de force: an album that glitters and sparkles, is emotional and beautiful, delivered on a bed of shimmering instrumentation. The Wonder live up to their name: ‘Pop’ is an anthemic flight that soars in the ether.
‘Pop’ is out now and can be downloaded and streamed here. Hopefully vinyl will be available at some stage: this would sound stunning.
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