Wet Hair

Comprising members of the well-known noise-rock outfit Racoo-ooo-oon, Wet Hair dispenses with live guitars entirely, but not the former's intense drones and emphasis on rhythm over melody. Still, the electronic sounds are resonant and expansive rather than abrasive; at times the band sounds as though it's playing a tape of...

By Tom Murphy

December 4, 2008

[
        {
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Inline Content - Mobile Display Size",
          "component": "12017618",
          "insertPoint": "2",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
        },{
          "name": "Editor Picks",
          "component": "17242653",
          "insertPoint": "4",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18838239",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17261320",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18838239",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - Leaderboard Tower - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17261321",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        }
      ]

Comprising members of the well-known noise-rock outfit Racoo-ooo-oon, Wet Hair dispenses with live guitars entirely, but not the former's intense drones and emphasis on rhythm over melody. Still, the electronic sounds are resonant and expansive rather than abrasive; at times the band sounds as though it's playing a tape of an unlikely collaboration between John Cage, Robert Moog and Karlheinz Stockhausen. Minimalist, layered compositions of texture, shimmery synth atmospheres, electronic keyboards and drums and live drums collide and collude to craft a sound that captures perfectly the silent majesty of a major metropolitan area seen from a distant hill. This band isn't perpetrating some kind of lo-fi post-rock; rather, it's taking a recycling approach that puts old equipment and techniques in new contexts. Not scientist rock, but mad-scientist rock.

Become A Member

BEFORE YOU GO...
Can you help us continue to share our stories? Since the beginning, Westword has been defined as the free, independent voice of Denver — and we'd like to keep it that way. Our members allow us to continue offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food, and culture with no paywalls.

Tom Murphy is a writer, visual artist and musician from Aurora, Colorado. He was a prolific music writer for Westword and a documenter of the Denver music scene.

Follow:

Twitter: @simianthinker