Wye Oak - Civilian

Since their inception in 2006, Baltimore duo Wye Oak have released two lushly beautiful albums that have established them as purveyors of intensely felt noise pop, drawing as much from Americana as the likes of My Bloody Valentine. Their third cements their reputation, moving deftly between subtle modulations of colour and shade, remaining sincere without ever becoming shrill.

At its foundations, Civilian is built from large slabs of interlocking textures. Jenn Wasner deals in melodically gorgeous hooks laden with just the right amount of distortion, while her partner and consummate multi-tasker Andy Stack generates some compelling propulsion with a carefully looped mixture of drums, bass and keyboards. Even at their most gargantuan the pair aren’t overly demonstrative, Wasner’s woodsmoke-laden harmonies sitting perhaps a touch too far back in the mix.

Their sound recalls groups renowned more for a sense of unassuming interiority than any overblown extroversion – the title track wouldn’t be out of place on a Calexico release. The folk-rock inflections of a track like ‘Plains’ veers more towards the dreamy melancholia of Songs: Ohia than Bright Eyes, while the feel-good waves that roll off ‘We Were Wealth’ suggest more the Do Make Say Think brand of post-rock than the guitar-fest of Explosions In The Sky. Though the sonic explosions that punctuated their previous effort The Knot are largely absent, Civilian is nonetheless studded with clusters of distortion that suddenly loom and vanish as quickly. There are some exhilarating moments here; the mesmerising tail of ‘Hot As Day’ for instance, or the frayed vulnerability of Wasner’s voice on album closer ‘Doubt’.

Never less than compelling.


First published in The Brag, Iss. 412, May 16th 2011