Friday night. Brooklyn. A non-descript door is the entrance into Aviv, a 6-month-old do-it-yourself music venue. The Do-it-yourself must also apply to staying cool and ventilated because after being hit by the decibels from an ill-placed speaker, you are swallowed up by swamp heat, courtesy of no ac.
Nevertheless our timing is perfect. Vowws is up next. They are an industrial pop duo based out of Los Angeles by way of Australia. They describe themselves as “pop demons,” and have gained something of a cult following.
Onstage, and despite the heat, they are both dressed in black. The guitarist and singer Matt is tall, skinny, and pale with noticeably high cheekbones. In a black trench coat beneath a swarm of black hair is Rizz, not so pale. She stands behind two synths set at right angles and has the mien of a captain piloting her ship as she overlays melodies and effects onto sampled percussions.
Before a word is sung, the guitarist locks into their groove bobbing his head rhythmically and lurching back and forth while playing his guitar. He sometimes adds individual notes, other times entire chords. His voice is a baritone, reminiscent of Ian Curtis but smoother with a Dave Gahan (Depeche Mode) feel.
The music walks a fine line between pop, and I mean “pop” in the underground sense, and industrial, with all its aggressive and dissonant implications. While reveling in bass and distortion, Vowws doesn’t completely trade in the haunting and seductive ambiance of its gothic influences for the abrasiveness of groups like Skinny Puppy and KMFDM, although they do indulge that side as well. Their brand of Industrial Pop is more atmospheric, like 80’s era Dead Can Dance, while still being danceable and referential to influences like Gary Numan – with whom they’ve collaborated. I also can’t help but hear traces of the Cure and Despeche Mode and even a little Mazzy Star, especially when Rizz sings. Her voice is fairly deep, although it’s not easy to notice next to Matt’s vocals.
Live the duo exude a charisma that is difficult to contrive; they are young and visually striking (with video footage played over them as they perform) and representative of each gender, a winning formula. But the real appeal of their live performance is the focus they give their music. They never looked out into the audience and attempted any rock-star posturing, which would’ve been forgivable in a genre so prone to histrionics. Their concern was legitimately about letting their music through presentation speak for itself, and attention to detail of this kind can be contagious, especially when the music is this good.
INTERVIEW WITH VOWWS
How did you guys meet?
In the early 2000s we met first year of college, in Sydney. We were at
an end of year party and got talking about how we were both
dissatisfied with the bands we were working with for study. I was
playing guitar for a funk band, Rizz was playing bass and back up
vocals for a folk band. I wanted to play drums in a band, Rizz wanted
to sing metal covers, so we formed our own band on the side and
would use the rehearsal rooms after hours to play the music we liked.
Very soon after that, she joined my experimental surf-rock type band
and we went from there.
Was there a provisional sound you were looking for when you
formed (cite influences)?
We came to the US in 2010, and we weren’t sure exactly what we
were doing, our band from Australia had just broken up and we were
trying to move on….we just knew we had something to say and that
we would find it if we had enough time and focus. We knew we would
be a 2-piece with an electronic base, and we knew what our roles
would be….We generally don’t think too much about musical
influences, until we’re discussing a song or writing it – we tend just to
enjoy stuff for what it is…lots of randomness.
A lot of people who talk to us after shows are like, “yeah Depeche
Mode, Sisters of Mercy, Bauhaus, The The….” but to be honest, with
the exception of Violator (and a couple of Bauhaus tracks), most of the
darker 80s stuff has never really directly influenced our style and a lot
of our references are quite different to what we do. Our voices and
writing habits happen to sound a certain way where we can’t actually
do music like a lot of other people, and if we try to it sounds really
twee. We listen to a lot of Fantomas and ween on the road…and at
parties we like to put on horror movie soundtracks.
How certain were you that the visual and imagery would play a
role in your group?
Very, It’s incredibly important, however the music is designed to not
have to rely on the visual. We labor over making the music as rich and
fully formed as possible so that it can inspire the listener to color it into
something that means something to them. When it’s first presented
however, we have an opportunity to color it ourselves and show you
our intent. We’re very picky about making our own visual content. We
don’t write our music with anyone but each other so the visual content
is approached the exact same way and when we make videos and
photos it’s literally always just the two of us and a camera. It’s not very
practical to be the subjects of the videos and be shooting/editing them
however…. It seems like it takes forever and is quite tricky to do but
we’re not interested in having it pass through anyone else’s hands. I’m
sure if other people were involved, we could find someone cool who
make make us look cool and get some cool blogs to post our cool
video (and nearly have on a few occasions), but it just doesn’t feel
right doing it any other way. The energy between us is the spine of
this whole thing so it works beautifully when no one else is in the
room.
Was being a duo a conscious choice or circumstance?
Conscious choice, driven by Rizz. We had always played with other
people in Australia, and the first year or so in the US. We were pretty
expert at ‘being in a band,’ but it had become stale. I was always less
comfortable without the security blanket of a band, but now I’ve
realized how much of a strength it is. Rizz was always pushing that it
was it’s own thing, with it’s own beauty and purity – there’s nothing to
hide behind, it’s only the energy between the two of you and nobody
to pick up the slack.
Where did the name “Vowws” come from (any deeper meaning
behind it)?
It was originally spelled correctly but we discovered there were like
three other bands called Vows, and we weren’t gonna change the
name completely so we added another ‘W’. It’s a heavy word if you
think about it; a commitment, a promise and usually associated with
faith and religion which is a loaded topic right! This band has been a
huge commitment for us both.
How were you received back home (were you a part of a
particular scene)?
Pretty well. We were part of the experimental music scene on the East
Coast…but again, we were a band so it was a bit different. I suppose
we ‘cut our teeth’ there, so to speak. Australia is kinda good for that
cause it’s still a bit cut off from the rest of the world, and incubates
some weird stuff. There is a lot of wide open nothingness, which is
perfect if you want to draw from within and not have other people’s
ideas in your face. The flip side of Australia is that you can get stuck
there, and never really get out. It’s a cool place to develop and it’s an
interesting place, but it’s inward focussed.
Why the move to Los Angeles?
It’s a big city, with lots going on, but it’s still liveable as a musician.
That balance of opportunity versus cost of living hasn’t gone
completely out-of-whack like it has in other places…there’s a lot to LA
once you scratch the surface too – it’s often not been given enough
credit, although there seems to be somewhat of an exodus from New
York to LA now. And it’s grown on us so so much – all of it. The
dreams (realized and broken), the sun shining through the smog….it’s
a slow-moving apocalypse.
How has L.A. and the States in general treated you?
Awesomely. The States in general has been good, but LA in
particular. It takes a while to feel at home anywhere, we’ve moved
around so much since we first came here so nothing ever feels like the
home we came from. LA is geographically wide open and spread out,
not as in your face as New York so when you want to shield yourself
from everyone else’s noise and ideas, it quite easy, but the
opportunity is everywhere when you decide to surface.
How does it compare to the rest of Europe?
The States is different to everywhere….it’s so much more fast paced,
and there are things going on here that aren’t happening anywhere
else in the world. For better and for worse. But it’s extreme – obviously
we’re more familiar with Australia, and generally that is a weird place
where you are afforded the isolation to develop your shit without
interference…but the flip side to that is after a while you crave some
interference….cause feeling like the world is passing you by. So
America offers that welcome forced-face-time.
How did the collaboration with Gary Numan come about?
Last year we sent him our stuff, and asked if he’d be interested in
doing a song. We then wrote a song with him in mind, and sent it to
him. We heard back that he liked the song and would do it. Obviously
we were unbelieving, and we never actually thought it would come
about!….but it happened and we’re extremely grateful and it’s still a bit
weird to hear his voice on our song.
Anybody else you’d like to work with?
There are actually a few people doing some remixes that we’re very
excited about. Not all what you might think…we’re pretty open about
who we want to work with, and we’d like to keep it as diverse as
possible – stuff you wouldn’t expect.
What does the future portend for Vowws, Musically? (is your sound evolving in any particular direction?)
In some ways we’re wanting to get more experimental… and in some
ways what we’re actually writing is a little more subtle. We have very
particular things to say but we like to present them in ways that aren’t
too literal. We’re going in lots of different directions, who really knows
what’s gonna come out the other end.
Any shows/events/tours/projects you want to plug?
Our debut full length VOWWS album, ‘The Great Sun’ is coming out
this Fall. We’ve got some rad remixes and more videos coming out
after that too.
Text + Interview: Mario Norena
Pictures: Anna Yatskevich
Hi Matt and Rizz, always knew you’d be stars. Just listened to two of your songs and can’t wait for the album to come out.So proud you’re my cuz. Not good with computer stuff (still learning) but read everything about you. You’re so loved, so missed and so genius. Chiqueaux Diablo says hi and is still confused when told to go on his mat! Great to hear you’re doing so well.