Wylderness - Safe Mode EP

Following a couple of albums in 2018 and 2022, Cardiff's Wylderness is back with the new four cut Safe Mode EP.  Overall, the EP has a very late eighties / early nineties vibe.  Opener “Big Idea” is a hypnotic track that has a very shoegazer sounding start, then mixes in some jangly alt rock along with interesting guitars that have a bit of a Smiths era Johnny Marr sound.  “Is It Summer” kicks off with a laid-back, dreamy alt rock sound (reminds me a little of early Lloyd Cole), but has a slow build with elements of shoegaze coming in more and more before the fuzzed out wall of guitar climactic ending.  The dizzying, swirling sound of “Sun Scream,” along with some clarinet giving it more of that eighties / nineties alt rock sound, is very reminiscent of bands like The Ride and Stone Roses and has another explosive closing full of loud, noisy guitars.  The EP’s final track is “What Happened To The Rain,” which is again dreamy and laid-back, bordering on shoegaze, but with more of a modern-day twist.  

(Wylderness - Facebook / Wylderness - Bandcamp)