The day before we welcomed U.K. punk outfit Savages in our studios, the label reps and management sent over enough black window covering to darken most skyscrapers.
We knew ahead of time that it was to be a moody affair, one akin to the session we produced with the group Rhye, who also had requested a cavernous aesthetic. While the two groups of artists are polar opposites stylistically, the level of emotion and energy pouring out of their respective sounds were neck and neck.
Savages’ genre of rock is sometimes referred to as post-punk and I don’t think that it means the same to everyone who hears it. But this is what I’ll say about them being a punk rock group:
To me punk is to me is a collection of (usually four) artists who equally pitch in to make the whole. There’s no rhythm section carrying the lead singer, no lead guitarist shouldering the load of the entire band, no synths and produced beats bringing the band into the festival circuit.
Its four artists using the tools they brought, building something that is greater than the individuals. That’s not to say some musical acts hide the less talented, I’m saying that all musicians aren’t featured on the same level as prominently as in punk bands.
In their first visit to Morning Becomes Eclectic, with all the window coverings and black attire, they ripped through “Hit Me” and “Husbands”, and the slow burner of “Waiting For A Sign”.
Their debut album “Silence Yourself“ is, in typical punk fashion, on the shorter side and with a lot if being not-so-radio-friendly. But what we did get was enough to understand that this band will be making a lot more noise in the future.
Savages Live on KCRW — Set List
City’s Fuel
She Will
Waiting For A Sign
Hit Me
Husbands