This Record Changed My Life: Oh Wonder

Currently the #2 Most Blogged artiston HypeMachine, Oh Wonderaka Josephine Vander Gucht andAnthony West, will be bringing their bewildering complexity and distinctive lilting harmonies to Australian shores in Decembef for Falls Festival.

TMNhas asked the duo which musical work changed their lives. As a testament to Oh Wonder’s long-running romance with pop in all of its forms, theLondon-based duo has chosen Feist’s latest opus Metals.

FEIST
METALS
–Oh Wonder

“We were both hugely affected and inspired by Feist’s latest record, Metals. We’ve always been huge fans of Feist, particularly her earlier albums The Reminder and Let It Die where her collaboration with Chilly Gonzales, amongst others, created two beautiful records of storytelling set to catchy hooks, light pop melodies and quiet, clever production.

“We watched Look At What The Light Did Now, the documentary on the making of The Reminder, and it’s essentially her hanging out in a house with her friends being creative, and using every corner to inspire a sound or a feeling. Metals was the record that followed, and whilst it soaked up all that intimacy, it was somehowmorereal, more present and for us almost felt like a call to arms.

“It’s the pinnacle of pure, real and beautiful songwriting coupled with dramatic, emotional, raw production. It’s a record of power and fierceness – she definitely lives up to her name in that it’s feisty and full of nonchalant guitar riffs, bass clarinets and howling vocals, which are carefully contrasted with delicate strings and the intimate ’Cicada and Gulls’… and THAT voice. It’s a progression, a maturing of her songwriting, and there is an intricately weaved soundscape that floats around her voice, rooted and exposed at the centre.

“It’s inspired us hugely in our own recording process, as it’s a testament to music being all about the moment. A record captures a moment. We have seen a few recording sessions with other people where seemingly it is just about getting a good vocal take and playing the right chords. But Feist has taught us that the best vocal take is not one that is in tune and sung well – it is something that harnesses those ever present feelings of pride, fear, inquisitiveness, freedom, power and nostalgia in one succinct vocal take. Music is about life – not just following the lines.”