Much-anticipated follow-up to a 2010 critically acclaimed debut, Wax Fingers‘ first EP ‘Tender‘ (released yesterday) is a beautiful example of skillful orchestration. Adding new synthetic sounds to their guitar combinations, modulating textures into waves, skipping at ease from minimalistic segments to heavier freakouts, the band found a way to dissimulate the complexity of their compositions in an uncluttered, somewhat harmonious ensemble. Prog-rock with a pop edge. Deliciously surprising at every turn, each of the four tracks maintains a structural integrity that prevents the whole from ever being unhinging. As if perceived from the depths of a psychedelic venture, Pete Bosack’s voice echoes in the distance, inviting one into a playful field of instrumental experimentation where many parts can interact without turning into nonsense, or cacophony. Tracy Mamoun
