The Waeve – The Waeve

Graham Coxon and Rose Elinor Dougall met at a London venue in 2020 and exchanged playlists. Bonding over a shared love of English folk, a collaboration emerged, of which this album is the product. The ten songs of this self-titled debut, The Waeve, are sprawling in influence and sound, and cinematic in arrangement. Recorded at Coxon’s north London home studio during lockdown, this is the experimental result of a musical conversation.

The range of influences and instruments make for a pleasingly unpredictable listen, with post-punk industrial reverb mingling with jazzy inflections of Coxon on saxophone. All Along hears Coxon playing a cittern, a Medieval folk lute, while the Elysian Quartet lend their sublime strings to many of the songs. Dougall plays the piano and synths.

Dougall’s voice is low and understated, with the clipped downbeat of a pronounced English accent. She is a steady presence, hitting notes squarely with little acrobatics or frills. Coxon’s voice is more fragile and idiosyncratic, yet the mix works and adds more texture.

Lead single Kill Me Again’s beat prowls between flashes of saxophone, while Coxon sings: “I run through your fingers laughing/I fall through your eyes and then/I don’t care if I’m dying/Kill me again.” It is an effective encapsulation of a restless sensibility that does not want to be compartmentalised or tied down to any genre.

Drowning is a woozy overkill of layers, whilst the next track Someone Up There gets a bit rowdy, with aggressive lyrics and industrial punk vibes. All Along mixes spry lute lilts with fuzzy reverb and dirge-like rhythm. Undine has a mythic quality as it explores female strength and male vulnerability over an undulating, meandering eight minutes. Alone and Free bends the reverb on the guitar to an almost underwater effect.

Coxon has always been the most inscrutable member of Blur, less comfortable in the limelight than his bandmates. His autobiography is published this autumn and this album feels like a missive on his terms. In an industry that can be overly preoccupied with genre, this is a defiantly unpredictable piece. Dense with sonic experimentation, it is a satisfying listen for those who eschew the overly polished and easily definable.

Jessica Wall
Image: Steve Gullick

The Waeve is released on 3^rd February 2023. For further information or to order the album visit The Waeve’s website here.

Watch the video for the single Kill Me Again here: