MEMORIALS (Electrelane/Wire) share new song “In the Weeds”
BRBrian Miller6 months ago7 min read
The airwaves just got a welcome jolt of post-punk electricity with the release of “In the Weeds,” the new single from the UK duo MEMORIALS, a project that unites the formidable talents of Electrelane’s Verity Susman and Wire’s Matthew Simms. For those steeped in the lore of British indie and art-rock, this collaboration feels less like a casual side-project and more like a long-awaited convergence of two distinct yet complementary sonic lineages.The track itself is a masterclass in controlled tension, a hallmark of both artists' primary outfits. It opens with a brooding, repetitive bassline that wouldn’t feel out of place on a late-70s Wire record, all minimalist menace and rhythmic insistence.Over this, Susman’s vocals arrive not with a shout, but with a hypnotic, almost incantatory delivery, weaving a narrative of being lost and overwhelmed that feels both personal and universally resonant. Simms’ guitar work is characteristically inventive, eschewing straightforward riffs for textured layers of atmospheric sound and sharp, melodic fragments that cut through the mix like shards of glass.The production is beautifully raw, preserving the live-wire energy that defines the best of both Electrelane’s krautrock-infused dynamism and Wire’s foundational art-punk precision. This release isn't merely a new song; it's a statement of intent.It prompts the immediate and hopeful question from fans and critics alike: is this the first taste of a full-length album? Given the prolific and consistently high-caliber output of both Susman and Simms across their careers, the prospect is thrilling. An album would provide the necessary canvas to fully explore the creative friction between Susman’s organ-driven, motorik rhythms and Simms’ more angular, guitar-based architectures.One can imagine a record that swings from driving, instrumental passages reminiscent of Electrelane’s “The Power Out” to sparse, lyrical moments of introspection that echo Wire’s enduring influence on thoughtful, avant-garde rock. The context here is rich.Electrelane, though sadly dormant for years, left an indelible mark on the 2000s indie scene with their fiercely intelligent and instrumentally potent albums, while Wire remains a living institution, continually evolving and refusing to be relegated to nostalgia. MEMORIALS, therefore, exists at a fascinating intersection—it carries the weight of legacy while operating with the freedom and renewed creative spark of a new venture.“In the Weeds” successfully bridges these worlds, offering something that feels both familiar and freshly exploratory. It suggests a duo not content to merely trade on past glories, but one actively mining their shared and individual histories to forge a new path forward.For listeners, this single is a compelling invitation, a fragment that promises a deeper, more complex narrative to come. The hope for an album is not just wishful thinking; it feels like the logical and exciting next step for two artists who have spent their careers defying expectations and pushing the boundaries of their respective sounds.
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#Electrelane
#Wire
#Memorials
#new song
#In the Weeds
#UK duo
#album
