Last year, we wrote about Heavy Eyes, the fantastic full-length record from Ontario’s Basement Revolver. The record shows off “an expansive and spacious sound that’s lit up with a slow-burning emotional resonance,” we wrote in our review, “combin[ing] the magnitude and granular glitter of shoegaze, the personal songwriting of bedroom pop and the cathartic noise of 90s indie rock.” The result was an impressive and evocative collection of songs that managed to retain intimacy amid the noise. “[Basement Revolver] play a double game of big and small, switching from quiet personal sentiment to big bombastic broadcast, often within the same song.”
Since the release of that album, the band have welcomed another member into the fold, with Chrisy Hurn (guitar, vocals), Nimal Agalawatte (bass) and Brandon Munro (drums) joined by second guitarist Jonathan Malström, and have set to work recording a brand new EP. Recorded with Ian Gomes (Greys, Frigs, Odonis Odonis) and again released with Sonic Unyon Records, Wax and Digital sees Basement Revolver utilise their added firepower while sacrificing none of their intimate spirit.
The development of style is clear from the opening title track, a rich and romantic song that benefits from the newfound depth of sound. The references here are niche, nods to the likes of Mount Eerie, Valley Maker, Andy Shauf and MewithoutYou acting like personal secrets, code words to represent the singular shape of a specific relationship, the threads of that form the tapestry of a shared experience.
The wistful ‘Master’s Degree’ lets go of long-held ideals, challenging the perception that one must prove their intelligence in order to be respected or valued, while the frantic shoegaze of ‘Concussion Pt. 2’ traps the listener in a whirlpool to recreate the panic and powerlessness of ill health. ‘Have I Been Deceived’ is altogether slower, building with warm courage to face questions of faith.
“I think about ‘Have I Been Deceived’ as an open letter to God,” Hurn describes. “This past year, I have been feeling like I was brainwashed.” The sensation, familiar to many who were brought up under a strict religious regime, can be as painful and disorientating as the dogma itself. Hurn describes how her whole view of the world, from love and sex to something as small as musical taste was dictated by her upbringing, and dents in this logic can cause the whole thing to unravel. “That was my entire identity,” Hurn explains. “Throughout my twenties, this identity fell apart.”
Now overt Christian culture makes her feel nauseated, a pain doubled by the nagging knowledge that something as important as spirituality might be forever tarnished by a toxic experience. This anger and confusion is explored in the song as well as a video directed and edited by Andy Friesen, with stop motion animation by See You On The Moon.
However, as the closing tracks highlight, Wax and Digital is a record about moving beyond the past to a more welcoming present. “It’s hard to write a song,” Hurn sings on ‘Romantic at Heart’, “when things are going good in this life,” capturing the self-confidence that shines through every track. When love is found it tends to overpower everything else, and for those on the outside of this glow it can be easy to be skeptical about art that declares life good. However, far from basking in the comfort, Basement Revolver instead use it as a space to examine what has been, as though only in putting distance between ourselves and past suffering can we come to understand who we are.
Wax and Digital is out now via Sonic Unyon Records and you can get it from the Basement Revolver Bandcamp page.