The project of brothers Patrick Wanzala-Ryan (guitar/vocals), Christopher Wanzala-Ryan (bass) and Mark Wanzala-Ryan (drums), London‘s Sister Wanzala caught our attention back in 2019 with single ‘I Went Whaling in My Gap Year‘ from The Circus EP. A creeping track which gathered momentum as it unfurled, the ominous vocals bringing to mind Nick Cave or Wild Beasts to form a tone “both sinister and bizarre,” as we put it, “and wholly appropriate for the band’s character—a kind of halfway house between dread and wit.”
This mood extends right through to the band’s promotional material, the decidedly self-deprecative press release for brand new single ‘Perfume’ disavowing much of their back catalogue and promising little by way of improvement. But more than being a PR gimmick, the notes communicate something present within so many independent releases that most work to ignore. A sense of futility in an age where ‘content’ is fleeting and everywhere, and success is measured by gamified scores. That the dread and wit of ‘I Went Whaling’ has endured and leeched into every aspect of the Sister Wanzala project is hardly a surprise. Is it possible to attempt to create in such a climate without a good dose of each?
Described as the result of quality time spent with Cocteau Twins and Fleetwood Mac, ‘Perfume’ pushes the Sister Wanzala sound into its dreamiest space yet. A collision of unhurried textures and taut pop rhythms, like a mind trying to pull itself from a daydream which never quite seems to end. What emerges is Sister Wanzala at their most earnest in spite of everything, the track’s sleek longing indicating that some sense of possibility persists, even if it is perhaps against better judgement. “I want my dreams removed,” Patrick Wanzala-Ryan croons in the repeated refrain, but for now the prospect is on hold, the dreams remain intact.