Monday May 24th – 7pm to 11pm
Wyldest’s debut album Dream Chaos, released in 2019, was a swirl of dream-pop and shoegaze, with sweet melodies bathed in reverb, recalling the likes of Warpaint and, on the heavier end, My Bloody Valentine. The album was then re-worked for a stripped-back version – Redream Chaos – last March, and this aesthetic carries through to Monthly Friend while being pushed further along. “I was hell-bent on removing the reverb,” Zoe says of her approach to Monthly Friend – her sophomore record due 28th May via Hand In Hive (A.O. Gerber, Blackaby, Swimming Tapes), longing for a more intimate sound akin to her influences at the time, such as the tender songwriting of Elliott Smith and Phoebe Bridgers.
Of the new record Zoe says: “Monthly Friend is a concept album in its entirety, with themes relating to womanhood, the physicality of it, the different ideas around it and its limitations and advantages.”
Across the ten-track record, tales of insomnia (“Beggar”), empowerment (“Hollow”), apocalyptic visions (“Glue”) and the abusive relationships women are often subject to (“Heal”) are transmitted via intimate indie rock that shifts her sound to new places while keeping elements of the ambient, soundtrack-style dream-pop she presented on her debut. Time spent writing and recording with Bill Ryder-Jones, who’s unmistakable tones can be heard on “Buddy” and “Monthly Friend”, also helped shape and inspire a record which pulls on a diverse range of influences and inspirations.
She stresses that the new album is far from the end of her evolution, too. Fast becoming an all-encompassing and ever-changing singer-songwriter, Zoe calls herself an “experimenter,” and plans to explore different nuances with each subsequent release. Alongside her work as Wyldest, she’s also quickly making a name for herself as a composer of soundtracks, working with award-winning filmmaker Laurie Barraclough on his 2020 short film Birdwatcher and an upcoming release titled Hey, Ma.
Support provided by Blackaby.