wojtek the bear: shaking fingers with the NME
Vinyl / CD / Obtain / Streaming
Out twelfth April
Glasgow’s wojtek the bear launch their extremely anticipated third album shaking fingers with the NME on 12 April.
The band who supply ‘sensible informal indie-pop’ is probably not a brand new identify to LTW readers, nevertheless it’s been a few years since their final album, Heaven By The Again Door. Simply as an introduction, wojtek the bear (all the time decrease case, a purely aesthetic selection) shaped in 2016 and launched their debut, a expertise for being unreasonable in 2018, adopted by the aformentioned Heaven By The Again Door in 2021. The 5-piece, made up of vocalist Tam, guitarist Graham, bassist Paul Kirkwood, Becky on strings and drummer Scott at the moment are again with their third album recorded, with legendary producer Stephen Avenue, throughout two weeks in the summertime of 2023 at Chem19 studios in Glasgow.
Shaking Arms With The NME feels slightly paired again compared to the earlier releases, songwriter Tam explaining they simplified the method; “I believe like most individuals creating any type of artwork we could be liable to overcomplicating issues, so when approaching the writing and recording for this report we tried to actually rein in that impulse.” The result’s stripped again at occasions however attractive, considerate and warranted; “Stephen was nice at nurturing that facet of us too – he gave us the boldness to know that usually the best issues are one of the best.”
Naturally there’s a very Caledonian really feel to the album, not simply vocally. There’s a complexity and depth to the ten tracks throughout the album, which at occasions supply similarities to artists from Aztec Digicam to BMX Bandits and The Orchid to Blue Rose Code. I assume it should be one thing within the air.
The album contains three current singles. Second Place On Goal, written by Tam after his son was born, “It’s basically concerning the realisation that, for the primary time in your life, you’ll instinctively put another person’s wants first”. The subsequent, Slowly, Then All At As soon as Appears to be like at “mistrustful individuals, and the way their deceit – intentional or in any other case – can lead us down surprising rabbit holes of self-reflection and self-discovery,” while Fireworks Out Of Focus, essentially the most ‘upbeat’ displays on rising up with any person and sharing these intimate moments that solely two finest friends can share.
While these have been launched as singles that’s to not say they’re the ‘standouts’, the album may be very a lot the sum of it’s components and is constant all through, there’s actually no filler on present right here, the lucious A Sunday With out Worry and the potentually libellous title monitor, which I nonetheless can’t determine if it’s tongue in cheek or a love letter to the 1990’s are equally each excessive factors.
I’ve been listening to the album over the previous few weeks, and while it wasn’t ‘immediate’ for me, Shaking Arms With The NME is commonly a really refined album which revealed itself over a variety of performs with one thing new to find on every event. A gradual burner however one that gives nice reward.
You’ll be able to catch the band at a particular headline gig on thirteenth April on the Glasgow College Union the place wojtek the bear will play with BMX Bandits and particular visitor Annie Sales space. Tickets out there right here
wojtek the bear’s linktree is right here
All phrases by Iain Key. See his writer profile right here or discover him on X (Twitter) as @iainkey
We’ve a small favour to ask. Subscribe to Louder Than Struggle and assist maintain the flame of unbiased music burning. Click on the button beneath to see the extras you get!