Originally having met after being stuck in an elevator together at a Top of the Pops recording in 2006, it would be fair to say that Imaad Wasif and Josh Garza are in no short supply of ‘indie cred’. Wasif being a solo artist and touring guitarist for the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and Garza being the drummer for Secret Machines.Though only three tracks long, ‘Electric Flower’ showcases a good deal of promise, and plenty to wet your appetite.
The first track, ‘Four 16′ opens with a wavering tremolo guitar line over rumbling drums, before a droning riff and vocals meet you head on. With a guitar sound very much akin to Sonic Youth, (which is in no way a bad thing), the chorus, with a monotone repetition of ‘Four sixteen’, sees more whirring riffs. Hypnotic whilst never sounding overly discordant, ‘Four 16′ works well as an opening.
In juxtaposition to the opening song, ‘Faces’, opens with a sweet melodic distorted guitar line, before Wasif’s soft dream pop-ish vocal drifts in – ‘faces are not what they seem, hiding places in our dreams’. Though ‘Faces’ is slightly weaker than the other two songs on the record, featuring some slightly clumsy lyrics, it’s in no way a bad song. Musically ‘Faces’ seems a more delicate approach.
Saving the best for last, ‘Circles’ shows Electric Flower at their best; starting off a slow droning Sonic Youth-ish riff before building into a change in tempo and an infectious guitar line. Vocals swirl around more impressive guitar work from Wasif, before building into yet another tempo change, then into a muffled solo which then flourishes into a melodic climax. Both Garza and Wasif seem to sound their best here; shifting tempo’s and first rate band interplay; a song that sounds both composed to perfection and equally unplanned and exciting, almost as if it was all improvised during the recording. It’s the most enthralling track of the EP by far.
‘Electric Flower’ envisages a band with much promise. Crucially Wasif and Garza require a full album to balance out their influences and variety of their music, which is hard to put across in a three-song EP. ‘Electric Flower’, whilst not sounding confused, is packed with influences. We hope to hear a full album soon, because Electric Flower has miles of potential.
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