So Nathan Williams is pulling out of Europe with his tail between his legs (one assumes) and the the future of WAVVES and of angry bloggers worldwide is cast back into the unknown.
I've been trying to write a response to this for days, but can't keep up with the unfolding events. I was going to (did) write a rambling defense of Mr. Williams against the deluge of shit talking and Schadenfreude that has been coming his way since Pitchfork founder Ryan Schrieber threw him under a bus and turned a Best New Music act into a whipping boy overnight. And since I have no idea what will happen in the next couple of hours, I'll try to do this while I have the chance...
If you haven't heard of Williams or his noisemaking project, WAVVES, then you probably don't read online music criticism because the internetz has been all a tizzy over him since his album got the blessing/curse of Best New Music. Wavves is the latest in a new crop of Pitchfork lauded “lo-fi” acts that have been polarizing fans and critics and stirring up all form of undeserved praise and ire with only a passing listen. For many, this 'meltdown' wasn't the first questionable move young Nathan has made in his months old career. There's a hilarious daytripping episode where he gets piss drunk and pretty much deflates the gaudy spectacle of SXSW. Some saw it as a portrait of a self important prick. I like to see it as the only reasonable response a young man could have to endless free beer, gushing praise, vampirical bloggers, and nonstop performances. And, if you have even a cursory understanding of his music, it should be no fucking surprise.
You see, Wavves makes noisy melodic punk rock, a kind of bastard throw everything on the wall and see what sticks music that takes up every bit of sonic space in a swirling mess that is (admittedly) hit or miss. I mostly like it. It's indulgent, it's at times annoying, and it never hints at any amount of technical ability. But it is made with urgency and and a certain kind of honesty. Not the bullshit honesty of someone who hunts for days on ebay for a cassette four track so he can sound like Robert Pollard. He doesn't push the boundaries of music, nor does he faithfully pay tribute to any one tradition. It's a mix of Williams' musical interests, a mix that isn't revolutionary, but isn't tasteless. And it isn't a bit pretentious either, which is where he get's himself into trouble.
Something has happened in the last couple of years in the independent music world. Something has developed amongst Pitchfork's cultural ascendancy, web 2.0, American Apparel, Stereogum, and the countless cultural signposts that have sprung up since say 2003. The independent music world, and 'indie-culture' has grown into a half defined, half praised, half maligned, sorta movement, sorta thing. That is, there is a HUGE amount of cultural baggage that wasn't there before. Back in the good old days, hipster culture could be pretty well explained by High Fidelity, or maybe a Yo La Tengo album. Now, the lines have been blurred. The sense of otherness and alienation in response to mainstream culture has disintegrated because, where is mainstream culture anyway? Hipsters are sitting on a good portion of it now, and it's made a lot of people feel uncomfortable to say the least.
And this is all a completely silly thing to talk about, isn't it? But, consider Nathan Williams. What king of hipster is he? Is he the well dressed American Apparel cultural tourist? Is he the laid back west coast vegan alterna-kid Believer? Is he the more-obscure-than-thou contrarian? A member of the Brooklyn trust fund elite? These questions are never asked straight out, but almost everyone weighing in on the situation has an answer. And I think, this is where a lot of the hatred and the instant backlash come from. New artists who debut with a Best New Music approval have to submit to this ritual, this is nothing new. His breakdown only provides living proof to his instant detractors that he's not up to the task.
Here's the rub: he didn't ask for this. I'm sure he was probably glad to have the press, the hype, the festival invitations, the good reviews. But only up to a point. He seemed pretty weary already when his Daytripping episode was filmed, and I can see why. Not one person seemed to care all that much about him or his music, but rather the aura of fleeting fame buzzing around him. Everyone seemed incredibly disappointed when the guy who made scuzzy stoner punk rock, was actually a scuzzy stoner punk.
People are disappointed in his shows because he's unprofessional. Well where the fuck did you get the idea that he was a professional? He has almost no touring experience. He's just a dude who recorded some sweet songs at home alone. He has had almost no time to gather a band to do justice to his recordings, so he paired down to what he could manage. It still sounds fun. And maybe he doesn't deserve the praise or the attention, but he's not exactly reveling in it. He's not demanding it either.
I'm sorry that he doesn't come fully packaged with a fully formed sound and look, ala Vivian Girls, Crystal Stilts, or the Pains of Being a Laboriously Long and Stupid Band Name. I'm sorry he's not posturing well enough. What, did the sunglasses, skate shoes, and vaguely hip hop baseball hat throw you? Here's a clue, he's from California, he skates, and he fucking loves hip hop.
Maybe people just don't want to hear about him anymore. Maybe he is just too pedestrian, too amateur, too much just a fucked up kid. But that's what I like about him. No, I don't want him to stay a fucked up kid, and I'm glad he issued that apology. I hope he gets his shit together and pulls throw this mess. I hope he develops as an artist, continues following his interests, and develops as a live act. But I hope he doesn't feel the need to submit to the wills of critics or anyone else who doesn't give a shit about him or his music.
I know I'm throwing a bunch of shit into this that may not belong. I know I'm defending someone who on the surface probably resembles Asher Roth more than I'm willing to admit. I know, I know, I know...
Just cut the kid some fucking slack, he's not the problem with music today, not by a long shot.
Thanks no No Trivia for this.
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I think it's possible that the whole meltdown thing will end up being a great career move, or at least have some positive effect in the long run.
ReplyDeleteThis is not say that Mr. Williams meant to make a bewildering crying mess of himself or lose all the money that comes from canceling a big European tour--he certainly did not, and it sounds like the festival mess was plenty genuine. But when was the last time we had a good breakdown in our (somewhat pathetic excuse) of rock and roll?
I don't mean to be a vulture, but isn't this sort of thing kind of exciting? Isn't this the kind of the thing that the Fall would do? And when was the last time anyone acted out of turn in anyway in the land of pitchfork?
Wavves, both in their music and that daytripping episode you mention, struck me as far more rock and roll than anyone we've seen in a while. Their music is not at all reverential; it is gnarly and exciting. Nathan Williams seems bored and/or dissatisfied, and just as a sneering pose. They are a living counter-measure to the bland platitudes of those awful pitchfork interviews where everyone's nice and no one has anything to say.
And, for all the self-destructive effort, they're the most read thing on Stereogum right now. This Wavves phenomenon has gotten people's attention in a way that the Dirty Projectors will never.
I agree, although I think Dave Longstreth is a pretty interesting character himself.
ReplyDeleteYou're dead on when you say Wavves isn't the problem. But then, wouldn't our effort be better spent find out what that problem is rather than proving Wavves isn't?
ReplyDeleteI'd say its highly problematic saying that this guy's virtue is being a fucked-up kid. Simply being a burned out punk doesn't create oppositional culture anymore, not by a long shot. Plus, burned out punks are kind of lame.
What vexes me most Nige, is why you identify with him so much that you defend him like you're defending yourself. Being an avid listener doesn't have to be discipleship. I probably shouldn't anyway.
I don't find Wavves interesting. I do find the discourse around it fascinating, but the reason for that doesn't have anything to do with the band, i think this whole buzz-fest does speak to the faux-half-movement you began speaking on and this idea deserves far more unpacking. I would stick with that rather than try to analyze the work, as the analysis of the work doesn't go very far. This is kind of the condition of punk rock in the first place.
That's true Chaz. The music either works for you or it doesn't. I like it because I generally like disenchanted punk (up to a point), and I think he does it pretty well. I like that he uses what's available to him to make records. Guitar, drums, a korg, garageband. I think that homemade albums can sound much more unfocused and juvenile than what he makes, so I get the impression he does actually CARE.
ReplyDeleteBut, his position in music is (as of this time, and probably now for good) more interesting than his musical output, and that does deserve some unpacking.
The guys from the Black Lips are dismissing him as unprofessional, which I find a little funny. I understand the made their name touring like madmen, but come on. The fact that bands like the Black Lips and Psychedelic Horeshit are dissing him strikes me as kinda pussy. I'm not sure why these guys aren't going after the Brooklyn elite. Maybe they have, but attacking Nathan WIlliams strikes is like "you can't join our scuzzy rock and roll club cuz you ain't punk enough." And I could give a shit about that. Why not set your sites on someone who might deserve that ire?
I'm not advocating that bands start shit with each other just for my personal amusement. I would like them to be a little more openly critical and in some cases competitive because I think that can (not always, but often) create a more vibrant scene. I think of the Who trying to one up the Stones trying to one up their friends in the Beatles, or the Clash trying to one up everyone else, Blur clearly being better than Oasis. I know, this sounds silly, but I also know that under the egalitarian and patently boring shit bands say about each other, there is an element of that competitive spirit still there. It comes out every once in a while, but people don't tend to name names. Unless it's Williams, since everyone agreed it's ok (safe) to kick him around, because he has no friends and a quickly disappearing influence.
I don't know, I guess I just want someone to call bullshit on Greg Gillis (sorry Chaz), like maybe James Murphy. That would be fun. Or Titus Andronicus vs. HEALTH, I don't know why. Or maybe just a good old fashioned East Coast vs West Coast rivalry, so that the south and Midwest could quietly take over.
I just don't want independent music, which is now very much outside obscurity, to stay so fucking precious.
How can you hate this though:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yu_moia-oVI