Solwave

Solwave pride themselves on their inability to be categorized, and while this claim has plenty of truth, it’s primarily due to the band’s willingness to experiment with different sounds and genres rather than their making music that’s actually uncategorizable. On their second EP, Out Of The Mayhem, the San Francisco quartet maps out a defined space within the pop music spectrum and proceeds to explore every nook and cranny of it. “Fire It Up” and “Voodoo At High Noon” are sweaty arena rock, with titanic drums and omnipresent Hot Fuss synth buzz; “Ride” is a dance-rock rave-up; “Shuffler” is heart-on-sleeve power pop. The band stumbles on the former two songs, particularly “Voodoo At High Noon,” which sounds like the ‘70s and the ‘00s put in a blender with the lid off. But on the latter two tracks, they sound completely in their comfort zone, suggesting that just like their heroes the Killers, they may just be a goofy pop band at heart. - SF Rebirth Blog

Solwave pride themselves on their inability to be categorized, and while this claim has plenty of truth, it’s primarily due to the band’s willingness to experiment with different sounds and genres rather than their making music that’s actually uncategorizable. On their second EP, Out Of The Mayhem, the San Francisco quartet maps out a defined space within the pop music spectrum and proceeds to explore every nook and cranny of it. “Fire It Up” and “Voodoo At High Noon” are sweaty arena rock, with titanic drums and omnipresent Hot Fuss synth buzz; “Ride” is a dance-rock rave-up; “Shuffler” is heart-on-sleeve power pop. The band stumbles on the former two songs, particularly “Voodoo At High Noon,” which sounds like the ‘70s and the ‘00s put in a blender with the lid off. But on the latter two tracks, they sound completely in their comfort zone, suggesting that just like their heroes the Killers, they may just be a goofy pop band at heart. - SF Rebirth Blog

A blooming local outfit, Solwave is the combination of sprinting, catchy songs abundant in character and charismatic onstage bombast. Every surging, swollen, hyperactive song twanged with serious frivolity. With any slip – a microphone stand almost flew crowdward – or mechanical failure – snapped strings – the motley quartet would roll with the punches like a dripping welterweight. Danny Ferdon and Moise Seri exploded with formidable moxie and precision, respectively. Tommy Ferdon weaved sophisticated, unfettered riffs through the thick foundation. Joe Collins, though, takes the cake (and then whips it into the air before shooting it like a clay pigeon). A sleek, stylish frontman with indubitable magnetism, Collins possessed all desired tropes for rollicking vocalists: energy, flexibility, pipes, presence, jubilation. As the anthemic gurgling, 21st century blue-eyed soul rumbled, the puckish rapscallion would whirl his wired weapon with youthful glee and abandon or writhe with emphatic ecstasy. - Spinning Platters

A blooming local outfit, Solwave is the combination of sprinting, catchy songs abundant in character and charismatic onstage bombast. Every surging, swollen, hyperactive song twanged with serious frivolity. With any slip – a microphone stand almost flew crowdward – or mechanical failure – snapped strings – the motley quartet would roll with the punches like a dripping welterweight. Danny Ferdon and Moise Seri exploded with formidable moxie and precision, respectively. Tommy Ferdon weaved sophisticated, unfettered riffs through the thick foundation. Joe Collins, though, takes the cake (and then whips it into the air before shooting it like a clay pigeon). A sleek, stylish frontman with indubitable magnetism, Collins possessed all desired tropes for rollicking vocalists: energy, flexibility, pipes, presence, jubilation. As the anthemic gurgling, 21st century blue-eyed soul rumbled, the puckish rapscallion would whirl his wired weapon with youthful glee and abandon or writhe with emphatic ecstasy. - Spinning Platters