Music Review
Wavves
King of the Beach
Noise Punk
Dive Verdict: 2/5 Stars
On Wavves’ second full-length, King of the Beach, Nathan Williams fancies himself czar of all things smoked, surfed and shredded.
It’s not so far-fetched — for the man who flaunts his drug use, DIY aesthetics, former fear of the ocean and his California identity like a flag, Wavves’ latest is an apt distillation of all the band has come to embody.
When you break the new record down to a list of parts, everything seems to fall into place. But as a whole, it’s a different story. Williams might fancy himself sovereign of the lo-fi surf-rock kingdom, but on their new release, Wavves is more akin to a delusional boy with a sand castle.
The most glaring flaw on King of the Beach is Williams’ unconvincing, conceited flippancy.
When he whines “My own friends hate my guts/So what, so what/Who gives a fuck?” on “Green Eyes,” it sounds more petulant than persuasive.
Plenty of punk rock frontmen and frontwomen have flashed a verbal middle finger, but the difference between legends like Sid Vicious and amateurs like Wavves is all in the delivery — Williams is too eager to exhibit his defiance.
There are plenty of other bands whose devil-may-care presentation and unadorned vocals surpass Wavves’.
Fellow indie rockers Let’s Wrestle take an equally screechy, contentious tack on songs like “I’m So Lazy,” but there’s an urgency and intensity that makes these tracks believable.
Wavves lacks this forcefulness — where other lo-fi pop acts are belting lyrics and thrashing on stage, Wavves is the aloof observer in the corner, so constrained by an image and an aesthetic that it doesn’t venture into the fray.
But there are still a few redeeming moments on the group’s latest.
“Take on the World” breaks momentarily from Williams’ penchant for feeble threats and self-pity, musing, “To take on the world would be something.” It’s a phrase Wavves repeats throughout the track, and compared to the rest of the album, it’s a welcome moment of clarity.
It’s a short-lived meditation though — on “Post Acid,” the next track, Williams is back to whining, wailing, “Misery, will you comfort me in my time of need?”
It’s hard to rule if the people can’t take you seriously, and Wavves’ latest is no Machiavellian threat.
King of the Beach is a shrill rumination on rebellion and surf culture, and in a kingdom built on angst and half-assed anger, even the sturdiest sand castles crumble.
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