Originally from Tresco on the Isles of Scilly, Jon, and Elle, or should we say West Wickhams are influenced by very unique elements and some eccentric ones that include Mary Shelley, Whitby Abbey, Pipe Organs, Flowers, Polka Dot Cats, Dark Punk, Gothic Novels, Rock n Roll Autobiographies, Castles, Abstract Painting, Euphoria, Mist, Autumn, Halloween, Optical Illusions, Edgar Allan Poe and Andy Warhol…such a colorful cast of unique elements that give some mystical power to the duo to do their magical music.

Their latest album “Vivre Sa Vie” which translates to “My Life to Live” is dark wave album that has elements of rock, ambient, and experimental approaches…fusing them together to create a very surreal sonic adventure that spans many emotions, stories, moods and genres…West Wickhams doesn’t have limits to their creativity, they are musical explorers that venture into uncharted territories and brings light to them.

“Vivre Sa Vie” is a very diverse album, with 9 tracks that tell its many stories…

West Wickhams starts out their adventure with a song that has a bit of a punch to it, you’ve got the drums playing energetically, the guitars are pouring melodies left and right, and the vocal melody envelopes itself into the ambient plane giving excellent texture and emotion to the whole experience…

…changing things up, “The Maddening Crowd” is an even more energetic musical experience, with an almost march-like drum pattern, it really gets the energy flowing through the body…but the interesting thing…is that the ambient elements are very clear and present…so you get a very strong contrast that really shines when the powerful and the ambient meets…

West Wickhams beautifully shows their musical charisma through their instrumentations and unique compositions…the chords, scales and notes they use are very unusual in an excellent way…it’s music that you haven’t listened to a million times before, this is something completely new.

The album continues to keep things always fresh with each song…from the 60s inspired vibes of “At The Cinema”, the 70s hints in “Shock Celebration” and the nostalgic sounds of the 80s found in “Damned Defiant !”…they don’t just bring these musical moods to us-the audience-they envelop it with their unique flavorsome musical taste that infuses new and never heard before musical concepts and compositions…

…West Wickhams shines as a new star in the music world with their unique musical creativity…

Wishing all the best to West Wickhams…Jon, Elle…you are awesome.

Cheers!

West Wickhams is a psychedelic/dream pop duo based in Surrey, England, but originally from Tresco, The Scilly Isles. Composed of Jon Othello and Elle Flores, this duo’s sound is truly sensational, and classic, provoking modern classics Lea Porcelain, and classic classics Joy Division in their skeletal guitars, guitar-rich arrangements, and soundscapes drenched with reverb. The sound is truly unique and compelling, while summoning to mind more than a few absolute epics.

Magenta is a small, but juicy EP from the duo. Running 14 minutes in length, this release has 5 songs, each a microcosm of ideas and vibes, it was a truly refreshing and bizarre listen, in the most admiring of ways. The indie magic starts with Swear Above Suspicion. The unique riff that immediately draws you in is a capable introduction to the duo’s hypnotic sound. With dry, skeletal guitars, and extremely wet, also skeletal guitars, the guitar arrangements of this track are a breath of fresh, fragrant, colorful air. This Is A Hang Up has a more conventional and intricate guitar work, with the two guitars sounding accessible and pristine and playing the arpeggios in sync and syncopation with one another, as the vocals wail somewhere in the background, covered with a layer or reverb so thick, it makes it impossible to make out any words, while making the whole vocal line sound beautifully ornamental and glistening. Even The Heathers Ask Why sees West Wickhams go alt-punk, with the alien-sounding strummed guitar and the simplistic, clean lead lines, playing deceptively rich melodies, giving the piece an atmosphere that i have seldom experienced before, rich with the charismatic yells that make up the bulk of the vocal delivery. Extremely colorful. Masculin Fémenin Hot Jump has a sweet, accessible composition and some truly out-there singing. A song that turns hypnotic in its last minute, it is perhaps my personal favorite.

Maybe it’s the richness of magenta, or how it always made me feel dizzy with its intensity. This short collection of pieces from West Wickhams ended up positively reminding me of this dense color, and kudos to them for that. A talented duo with a clear, dazzling musical and artistic vision, West Wickhams craft nuanced, and detailed musical landscapes using few moving parts. A joyful, quirky, and memorable listen.

When Jane takes a drug to induce an out of body experience, she wakes up in a distorted future where only women exist and everyone deems her mad when she talks to them about men.

The album opens with the title track that has a lot of melodic guitars and nostalgic basslines. You’d think this is your typical goth-rock band arrangement but it’s not really like that. The vocals here feel as confused as the story’s protagonist.

The second track Les Mepris (Underwater) is carried by a lead guitar melody and is where most of the 90s alt rock influences shine. Think of The Cranberries or REM for example. I can’t help but wonder why the rest of the record wasn’t as straightforward as this but I went on with the artistic vision and experience as they were intended. 

The third track “The Circus Is Over” has a jiggly bass line that feels influenced by famous goth acts (Think The Cure, Joy Division Alien Sex Fiend for example) and a repeating vocal hook “that was all a dream” that makes me feel like the effect of the pill our main character, Jane, took is beginning to wear out. I couldn’t tell for sure because once again the vocal delivery felt a little too unclear on this one.

The fourth track “The Zap Gone” was all eerie and creepy guitar sounds that I truly enjoyed and wanted more of. What a beautiful combination of musical influences to tell a story! It feels like we are approaching the end of the confusion and maybe Jane will be awake soon but then…

The fifth and final track of the record “Turning Into Someone Else” begins with once again unclear backing vocals that made me feel like I’m alone in Jane’s bad trip. It feels like the story ends with a cliffhanger or maybe even without an outcome at all. It was mind-boggling at this point.

In the end, the record felt like a soundtrack with minimalistic lead lines here and there but nothing that’s really super catchy. You will either love the album for its many influences, or dismiss it altogether because they’re all over the place. Don’t get me wrong this is a record I really liked, but just couldn’t help but feel like I want more and I want one of the many directions it had to be more prevalent.

Whether the future of West Wickhams will be purely post-punk or purely alternative, or an entirely new style is still undecided. But what’s for sure is that this is a band that sparked my interest to follow them in whatever future sounds they might invent.