Album review: Nocturne

Richard DiCicco
Staff Writer

Wild Nothing is something of a rarity among Virginia-based indie rock acts. Not only is it great local music, but it’s relevant to the wider alternative scene. Mixing modern trends in American underground rock with classic British indie pop, Wild Nothing’s second album is incredibly lucid and strikingly well-composed.

However, this one-man band had modest beginnings. Jack Tatum began recording under the moniker of Wild Nothing in the summer of 2009 in Blacksburg, and soon his early demos–including an inspired cover of Kate Bush’s 1985 classic “Cloudbusting”–attracted the attention of the indie scene.

Eventually he was signed by the label Captured Tracks, and whisked away into the blogosphere. His debut “Gemini” was released to critical acclaim and as they say, the rest is history.

However, for any talented artist like Tatum, the story doesn’t really end there. Readers, if you recall my remarks last week concerning the career path of the young band The xx, any musician’s sophomore effort is a defining moment.

The second album is the chance for an artist to prove that there is more to them than a hit debut and a summer single. It’s an opportunity to earn their staying power, and Wild Nothing passes with flying colors.

“Nocturne” is one of the most confident albums I have had the pleasure of hearing all year. Much like his debut, Tatum continues to draw from classic U.K. alternative rock, such as the lush guitar textures of shoegazer rock and the soaring, slick melodies of Britpop, while using the modern American dream pop and nostalgia-soaked chillwave scenes as grounding aesthetics.

Guitars laced with heavy reverb shoot across twinkling synths, lively drums and echoing vocals, but unlike 2010’s “Gemini,” they are constrained.

Wild Nothing’s previous release was packed with melodic songs that drifted through a haze and loosely fell into place, and while “Nocturne”s music loves to wander and explore its soundscape, it never loses touch with its pop formula.

Wild Nothing’s second album seizes the attention of the listener. Here, Tatum sounds more sure of himself, and it reflects positively in his music. The title track leaps into action at a jogger’s pace. “This Chain Won’t Break” announces itself with pounding drums. “The Blue Dress” grants equal time to all aspects of its craft, twisting and turning with a zig-zag guitar riff while chugging along with a grooving bass line. Tatum may limit himself sonically, but he plays with genre so openly that his restraint has given him focus.

“Nocturne” is more concrete and direct than Jack Tatum’s shaky debut, which, while pleasant, seemed content to glide rather than to ever touch down. These new songs are punchy and sculpted just right while still retaining their dreamy, hypnotizing rhythm. It’s dream pop with equal emphasis on the “dream” and the “pop,” and it’s excellent.