Wire Faces - King Cataract (Download)

Wire Faces, Halloween 2011. The band was dressed up as Television, playing absolutely note-perfect tracks from the seminal Marquee Moon to an ecstatic sold-out crowd. What was most impressive about the band – more than the flawless renditions of these difficult songs, more than the fact that drummer Shane Zweygardt was playing double-duty by blasting Billy Ficca’s skittering drumbeats whilst yowling a faithful Tom Verlaine yowl - was that all of this effort was for a one-off tribute show. This is a kind of work ethic and attention to detail that you just don’t see in bands much anymore. That attention to detail is apparent on King Cataract, the third release from Wire Faces, which was produced and recorded by the band themselves. Without the time constraints of a studio the trio was able to spend time experimenting and crafting the exact sounds they wanted – Zweygardt and bassist Menyus Borocz work in unison to create pummeling, machine-like groove, while Ian Haygood’s guitar alternately slinks through or soars above the bristling rhythmic foundation. And while post-punk bands like Television are clearly a touchstone for Wire Faces, King Cataract finds them stepping beyond the constraints of the genre, producing tracks like the beautiful, slow-burning stand-out, “Replicators.” The result is the strongest effort from Wire Faces to date.