You can’t tell from the title, Where to Begin, whether that’s a question or an answer. We’ll venture that it’s both, despite the question-mark’s absence. This is, after all, Shortwave Party’s debut EP; three tracks’ worth of jangle-happy, lofi surf bop. Question – because we’re wondering what to expect from a grrl -fronted and lofi surf -backed –band; and Answer – because this is it, the first pass at defining the quintet’s sound, genre, and playground; this is where we start.
And like most lofi, there is a bit of ear-training required – You could mistake "jangly" for "spangly: muddily-mixed and reverbed highs", and thus miss out on some of the very nice workings in these tracks; where guitars dominate the sonic landscape with both crunchy mass-strummings and prettily-picked highlights, reverberating and filling in the EQ curve.
Where to begin? Let’s open like this EP, with the title track; a buoyantly-danceable, furiously-sparkling piece; full of rambunctious chord change-ups and assorted breaks; presided over by Shelby DuPerier’s excellent, darn-near-contralto vox. A bright beginning for this collection, and sign of things to come.
Track 2, "Hopeless", is not as Emo as the title may imply. Though a slower number, DuPerier’s vox once again leads us through the tune’s energetic guitars; her voice ranging romantically up and down the scale, letting us follow the song’s emotional peaks and troughs.
Which brings us to "Terez", perhaps the best and deepest track, and thus a natural to conclude this EP. With straight-forward, head-pumping verses, split up with minimalistic breaks; the guitars crunchily driving the chord progression, leaving DuPerier opportunity to favor us with some very nicely-done soaring passages.
Overall, if asked, we’ll say we’re happy to begin right here with Shortwave Party’s brand of jangle-happy beach bop. –Scott Osborn
You can find out more about Shortwave Party and upcoming shows on their facebook.