Last Thursday night, DC’s sold out U Street Music Hall played to host Wolf Alice and their supporting act, Drenge—both indie rockers from across the pond.
There seems to be something good, in fact something rather brilliant, coming out of the British music scene these days, and Wolf Alice is certainly a part of it. This occurrence could be described as a “scene,” but even more specifically, it could be described far better as a sound.
There’s something to be said about steady, concentrated guitar parts—fuzzy and thick as any guitar tone can get—mixed with intricacy and punctuated with leads to form a dense, wonderful, and yes, catchy sound that has heads bobbing. Notable mentions are some of my favorite new bands over the last few years—Blood Red Shoes and Royal Blood.
The thing that is striking about Wolf Alice in particular is not only their talents as performers, but as songwriters. Their dynamics shine and create a certain drama with lush lead vocals laid atop of the entire mix by guitarist and vocalist Ellie Rowsell.
Wolf Alice has often been compared to bands like Hole and Elastica, but based on their debut album and live set, I think their skills may exceed both acts. Touring to promote My Love Is Cool released in June of this year, Wolf Alice are playing shows throughout the US during October then heading back to Europe with dates scheduled through the end of February.
Drenge from Sheffield, England had the honor of being the night’s opener. With a set full of energy and exciting hooks, the most obvious takeaway is their evident musicianship and the sharp timing the band possesses. And by the way—really fun to watch as well.
WOLF ALICE
DRENGE
