W
ho would’ve thought
that a band as
musically epic
as Swervedriver would
be such proponents of
moderation? Los Swervies
were in the original wave
of “shoegazers”—Ride
gave the band’s demo
to Creation Records,
also home to My Bloody
Valentine and Slowdive—
but they were the only
one of their peers to
appear on the UK’s Indie
and Metal charts. Tours
with Soundgarden and
Smashing Pumpkins
helped Swervedriver sink
its serrated hooks into
the hearts and minds of
discerning guitar lovers
here in the States, and
every one of their records
has been a sublime study
in the art of “more;”
psychedelic textures and
driving rhythms bring life
to labyrinthine melodies
on each album, from 1991
debut Raise to 2015’s I
Wasn’t Born to Lose You.
Apart from the gorgeous
tunes and epic tones,
the seamlessly intricate
arrangements by guitarists
Adam Franklin and Jimmy
Hartridge have always
astounded me—there’s
no “lead” and “rhythm,”
no alternating solos, just
blissed-out tapestries
that coalesce to make
outstanding, densely
textured rock songs.
I imagined a conversation
with these wizards would
reveal arcane guitar
knowledge. Instead, I
found two thoughtful-
but-pragmatic working
musicians who put the
emphasis on “working.”
Jimmy was clearly more
concerned about intonation
issues with his beloved
Les Paul than he was with
his pedalboard (although
he had pics of the pedal
board on his phone).
Adam namechecked the
Catalinbread Csidman and
Malekko’s Charlie Foxtrot
but still loves the Boss
RV-2 he used on Raise.
At the end of the day,
for both men, it’s about
functionality, even if that
means paying Canadian
“...every
one of their
records has
been a sublime
study in the
art of “more;”
psychedelic
textures...”
tech extraordinaire Brian
Duguay to turn a pedal’s
really cool malfunction into
a switchable feature. They
love the tools that help
them implement their ideas,
whatever those tools may
be. The result continues
to be some of the most
compelling guitar music
you’ll ever hear. There’s a
lesson in here, somewhere:
TRW When [2015’s] I Wasn’t
Born To Lose You came out,
I noticed the credits said
“Adam’s on the left and
Jimmy’s on the right” and I
was, like, “Finally,” I’ll know
who’s doing what!” But it
wasn’t true at all, was it?
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