Album Review: Wishy - 'Triple Seven'
A lot of energy, and even more fun. Wishy’s debut is guitar pop at its finest.
Indiana based songwriters Kevin Krauter and Nina Pitchkites are at the heart of this record. A record in which some respects may not have happened. The pair kept crossing paths but never collaborated musically until a later date, despite the pair attending the same school in Indianapolis. Krauter immerses himself in music. When he’s not on duty with Wishy, he’s a music teacher, where his disciplines focus on guitar and drums. The pair wanted to collaborate just purely because they felt that no one else was doing it in their area. This has given them the freedom to express and create as they see fit.
There’s so many fresh sounds on the record. ‘Persuasion’ really taps into those dreamy melodic guitar riffs that are dominating Australia at the moment before building and going into a somewhat raucous chorus. ‘Game’ is a 90’s distorted shoegazey throwback, throwing you into a world somewhere between Grunge and Britpop. One of the lead singles ‘Love On The Outside’ expresses the creative freedom that the band said they have. It has a dreamlike futuristic guitar riff layering on an acoustic guitar before ending on an outro that wouldn’t sound out of place on a Nirvana record.
The album is called ‘Triple Seven’. When discussing the album, Pitchkites says that “It’s an angel number that symbolises spiritual awakening and knowing one’s self”. This title may also hint at the way they are fortunate to have finally collaborated musically and to have found something great, despite missed opportunities in the past. The two have fairly different music tastes and when solo did create an identity which is slightly different to what the finished product of Wishy is. However, essentially it is just the duo’s music tastes and personal sounds combined. Doing this has allowed an album that sounds fresh and that in future album releases, creates a sonic identity in which the band could go any direction and it wouldn’t sound ridiculous, or an unusual transition.
Vocally, the pair are quite different too, with Krauter’s vocal delivery sounding to the point and not a million miles away from Julian Casablancas of The Strokes. Pitchkites vocals are hazy and tranquil, with both vocals adding a real depth to each track. It is a shame that we don’t hear too many lead harmonies between the two, but that may be a creative choice and one which may come in time. For fans of Grunge, Indie or Rock, this is a record in which you can’t go amiss. There will be something on this record to please you. It’s a great debut LP and a band that sounds like they could go anywhere in a creative sense, which only adds to the hype. ‘Triple Seven’ releases on the 16th August.
Words by Doug Dewdney
