Of all the local acts that could’ve been tapped to play Coastline Festival, Zulu Wave is among those actually relevant to our music scene and representative of its high caliber of talent.
Zulu Wave experienced the typical lineup adjustments after forming in 2011, as co-founders Michael Barrow (vocals, guitars) and Ariel Cortes (keyboards) sought bandmates who were “all in” — committed to being an active band participant and not just a player. “If you just want to play music, being in a band is almost 90 percent not that,” Cortes laughed. Planning tours, booking venues, managing finances, relentlessly self-promoting — “None of that stuff is that fun.”
Barrow and Cortes found what they were seeking in bassist Brian Schanck and drummer Danny Piechocki. The former is of prestigious Win Win Winter pedigree, while the latter (who also plays in Hovering Humanoids) brings his jazz-trained technical chops to the mix. “If anybody is the most talented of all of us, it’s definitely Danny.”
Zulu Wave takes the Coastline stage with guns ablaze, fresh off a two-week tour that took them up the East Coast and culminated in their second performance at the CBGB Festival in NYC. Cortes says this year’s CBGB experience was much more rewarding than their debut. As exciting as it was to rage the big Times Square stage, “They really limit your set times. They let us play 15 minutes, and we made it through three songs before they were like, ‘Okay you’re done.’” They snagged two slots for round two at CBGB, both standard-issue 45-minute sets performed to more responsive audiences. “We probably made more of an impact this time, despite playing to a quarter of the number of people. The Times Square set was like background noise. Some people looked up, most people didn’t.”
A new album is already in the works to follow-up Zulu Wave’s 2012 album Nyami Nyami, and will be recorded in the same Clearwater studio and their home away from home, Rock Garden Recording, owned and operated by Wolf-Face bassist Dan Byers. Cortes is excited about the possibilities. “Danny takes it to another level, energy-wise, and I don’t think our records have ever captured that exciting energy we have live.”
Their aesthetic resides in experimental and prog-rock realms, with ripping and screaming guitars zig-zagging through fuzzed-out low-end and dark keyboard atmospheres as Barrow’s tuneful high-reaching wails careen over top. Or his more subdued tones slide above avant pop and psychedelic territories that feel cool and spacious, shaded in echoing Dark Wave hues and drenched in reverb, sometimes segueing into more thoughtful passages marked by light Afro guitar phrasing and melodic key notes. The quartet’s complex and textured studio sound paired with loud and vigorously dynamic live interplay have earned Zulu Wave warm-up spots for The Kills, And So I Watch You From Afar, and IAMDYNAMITE among others. In fact, it was opening for IAMDYNAMITE and leaving a lasting impression on No Clubs promoter Tony Rifugiato that earned them the Coastline slot. When he got a call from Live Nation seeking local talent to add to the Coastline Festival bill, Zulu Wave was one of the bands he recommended.
The Main Stage at Coastline is inside the amphitheater, and even though Zulu Wave and Polyenso are playing the 2nd side stage, so are Surfer Blood and The Joy Formidable. “It turned out to be way better than I thought,” Cortes says. “When people first tell you, ‘You’re going to play a really early slot on the side stage,’ my first thought is, ‘I’m going to be set up in the parking lot playing to people on their way to the bigger stage.’ And sometimes that’s how it is. But this seems like a really nice layout.”
The 2nd Stage is, indeed, set up in a parking lot — but it’s the grassy VIP-only side, also site of the Foodtrucktopia, so anyone wanting a nosh has to pass the 2nd Stage to do so. It also means that Zulu Wave will be tantalized by mouth-watering aromas all throughout their set. Not that they mind. In fact, all four seem to be foodies-in-training. “When we’re on tour, we never stop at a McDonalds or any of those places; it’s always about trying to find the coolest place to eat, which can get frustrating but can also be rewarding.”
Zulu Wave plays Coastline’s 2nd Stage from 12:55 to 1:15 p.m.
This article appears in Nov 7-13, 2013.
