Summer ready: Wallows share 3rd album ‘Model’
The band of friends have found their feet in the music industry.
★★★★☆
Photo: Aidan Zamiri
From previously released singles Your Apartment, Calling After Me, Bad Dream and most recent A Warning, we’ve had teasers of what this new offering from the LA band could possibly sound like in its full length glory. Slotting those pieces into a much larger, mature puzzle leaves this album sounding like a new chapter for the band, who have been best friends since the age of eleven.
Model starts with arguably one of their best tracks to date, the single Your Apartment, before the unheard Anytime, Always gives Julian Casablancas and his gang a run for their money, starting off with an ooze of The Strokes before sounding far more like a work of Wallows towards the end.
With the singles released prior to the album, Calling After Me is one of the most memorable, and perhaps one to make the cut on my Spotify Wrapped when 2025 looms but, for now, in the context of the album, it’s a welcome jingly indie-pop number; a ‘bop’ that’s ready to be toured and is a guaranteed crowd pleaser.
Bad Dream, another expertly chosen single from Model, is a different sound altogether; something far closer to a bedroom-pop sound with a tinge of slacker pop, not quite grasping onto the ‘rock’ sphere, but nobody’s complaining. This is a chill track; a track to be played in the park, on the beach, or when you’re with that someone special and hopelessly willing the night to never end.
A Warning is next on the album and the last single to be released. With far more pop intricacies than before, A Warning is a track that is begging to be played on a festival stage and, with shared vocals, it stands out against previous releases.
I Wouldn’t Mind is a welcome change, before You (Show Me Where My Days Went) delivers a sound that can only be described as ‘Summer’; evoking every feeling that glimmer of sun brings out, and is the perfect track for all those late nights in fields.
Eighth on the track list is the effervescent Canada — if I was ranking the album, then this track might find itself in the fight for number one spot. It’s a love song — something the band do best and never shy away from — and would sound at home in a rom-com soundtrack.
Fighting for the top spot is the energetic, pulsating Don’t You Think It’s Strange, proving that the band really aren’t a one note kind of trio, and can change up their sound, especially as they release their third offering. She’s an Actress moves on from this high-energy sound to give us something funky; a track laden with instrumentation that would make Unknown Mortal Orchestra proud, and is a fitting track to flow into the penultimate track, Going Under.
Going Under is the perfect track to build up to the last song, with intricate guitar, angsty vocals and a rage that fills the space thanks to a kicking drum. Screaming erupts midway into the track, alongside jangly keys, making this song their most ‘out there’, pushing boundaries indie bands often find themselves confined in. More of this, please!
Finishing off the album with style is Only Ecstasy; a joyful, simplistic love song done in true Wallows fashion, ringing out their third offering with a live show-ready track.
Model brings a new era for the trio, who have finally come out of the shadow of frontman Dylan Minnette’s fame — despite having formed before he started acting — to make their mark on the music industry and truly hone their craft.
Model is out May 24th via Atlantic Records. Pre-order your physical copy here.
