Some people will tell you there are only two types of people in Glasgow: neds and art students. But listen to that false tale of two cities at your peril, because between the cracks in that hackneyed picture comes the sound of this city’s latest purveyors of Scottish pop. The twins that front Wake the President were brought up on the hard-knock streets of Maryhill but earned their stripes knocking around the council libraries, drinking dens and underwear-strewn bedrooms of Glasgow’s bohemian West End. To them, Franz Ferdinand’s town of tight-trousered scenesters is as much an illusion as Glasvegas’ city of non educated delinquents with blades.
Theirs is a more complicated picture. Lead singer Erik Sandberg’s lyrics are inspired by the characters of Glasgow; to him the old men propping up bars or wandering the streets are the lifeblood of the city. The songs he sings, melancholy reminiscences of blonde girls from the past, tales of the deceit and debauchery of the West End, resonate with the slurred poetry of these men, philosophising over whisky water at the Ben Nevis. His songs of masturbatory melancholia move from optimism to despair, querying the existence of love but acknowledging the omnipresence of desire. Bjorn, his quieter twin, provides the parchment upon which Erik’s witty commentary is scrawled, his guitar-playing channelling the clang of C86, the fury of Josef K and the jangle of Johnny Marr. Underneath this thunder, Mark and Scott provide louche basslines and drums that sound like they could lead an army to battle.
The twins have spent the last two years running independent label, Say Dirty, which released critically acclaimed singles from Endor and Zoey Van Goey helping to build a dedicated fanbase for the bands around Scotland. Then, when Wake the President were signed, they began to win over high-profile supporters, including BBC Radio 2 DJs Stuart Maconie and Mark Radcliffe. Both of the bands 2008 singles, ‘Remember Fun?’ and ‘You Can’t Change That Boy’, were voted single of the week on their show and soon after, they invited the band in for an exclusive on-air session. In-between all this, Wake the President have spent time on the dole, sold fruit (and chimpanzee meat, if you asked nicely enough) on Dalston market and whiled away many hours being bed-sit pop dreamers.
For comparison’s sake, imagine the whimsy of vintage Orange Juice but with the sordid, brutal honesty of Arab Strap. |
