Collaborative noise

Five-piece shoegaze rock band Perfect Body and noise pop artists Zac White team up for a fantastic idea entitled ‘Split’. The vinyl release (available digitally too) sees Perfect Body contribute three tracks on side A and then on the flip side Zac White pops five tracks on side B – literally splitting their contributions down the middle. It’s a great idea that I don’t see too often but it allows the two to showcase their music to each other’s audiences and work together for a common feel too.

Perfect Body’s three tracks are full-bodied jangly rock with heavy shoegazing overtones and splash of surfer rock hidden underneath. “Getting Cold” is a fantastically catchy piece that showcases their melodic immediacy and ability to rock, whilst “Fields” is much more of a brooding piece with more of a punk feel. The fact the band has multiple singers means that when the male leads, there’s a rowdy punk feel to things, but when the female vocals kick in they are bled out and ethereal. This changes the sound of Perfect Body completely. “Tribe of Mine”sees both vocal styles pulled together with big organ riffs and it reminds me of something Tanya Donelly would make if she were a punk rocker.

Zac White picks up where the anthems leave off with a sound that reminds me a little of early Beck. It’s grungy, more than a little distorted but full of hooks that a pop song craves for. “Spent On You” is a great example of this approach and White sounds like a low-fi poppier version of Stone Temple Pilots. “Nuclear Splinter” is a short riff rock track that is an underground hit in waiting. Clever production turns this bedroom rock sounding anthem into an unhinged T-Rex meets Blur. Psychedelia is part of Zac White’s sound and it bears out most in the superb “Sirhan Sirhan” which has an extended instrumental outro that gives nods to Temples and that vintage early 70’s psyche-rock era. “Waltz 3” is as close to a ballad as the EP gets as the acoustic guitars stir out into a huge finale, showing Zac’s versatility before a short “Piano Outro” tape chews a simple piano riff to close out the release.

Both Perfect Body and Zac White can be really proud of their sides as they equally have brought their own messy brand of rock to the party and then shoved it into your ears like an audio firework. I’ll be definitely looking at both of their back catalogues and if you’re looking for some good noise pop/rock to get into from the indie scene – this is an EP you need to pick up! More collaborative EP’s please!

Recommended track: Nuclear Splinter

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