Review: Water Damage ‘Repair’
Back in 2024, 2 Songs by Water Damage was one of my albums of the year, opening up my ears to the Austin band’s heavy, psychedelic drone. Despite my best efforts and a handful of UK dates, I have yet to catch the Texan noise-mongers live – definitely one for the bucket list. Ergo, I was especially delighted to be able to pluck Repair from The Shaman’s pile of promos for review.
True to form, the tracks once again follow the naming convention of previous albums, that is, they are given reel numbers as their monikers. You’ll find no clues as to what lies within here! Having said that, track number three has the title Reel 43 Down On The Street… curious. Nothing for it but to dive in.
Time is a major factor in the work of Water Damage. This is a band that likes to take their sweet time building each of their sonic werks. And when you’ve taken the time to construct something special and intricate, you want it to last; none of the four tracks clock in at less than eighteen minutes in length. It’s the perfect duration for this kind of music. It enables the listener to really immerse themself in the sonic maelstrom, relinquishing the mind to the moment and the journey. For optimum effect, I recommend steering clear of operating heavy machinery or driving whilst partaking of this particularly rich drone-psych gumbo.
Reel 45 kicks things off with a galloping rhythm from the drums, overlaid with percussion and dense, swelling drone that builds and grows, before reaching a zenith that is maintained across the track’s near twenty-minute duration. This is a drone that screams and wails rather than the sub-bass-fuzz-growl peddled by metal behemoths. And while Water Damage move at their own pace in piecing together each reel, there’s no lethargy in the runaway pulse of this opener.
the ensemble excels at taking one idea and extending it as far as it will go through instrumental extemporisation and repetition…
In contrast, Reel 38 feels very measured, to the point of being almost metronomic in delivery. The percussion and bass hold down a one-bar riff that’s almost childlike in its simplicity and its relaxed insistence, intermingled with sharp guitar drone and what I’m assuming is violin. The rhythm section gives this track the biggest groove on the album – almost funky!
Reel 43 is something of a departure then. The repetition’s there. The drone is there, though not as spotlighted as in previous tracks. This one launches the listener almost unexpectedly into a The Stooges-esque piece of instrumental garage rawk ’n’ roll. Now, this could have been a little straightforward given what’s come before, but the ensemble excels at taking one idea and extending it as far as it will go through instrumental extemporisation and repetition. Indeed, a riff that would be at home in a two-minute song from 1967 Detroit becomes something else when stretched over eighteen minutes. It morphs into the 21st century equivalent of a trance-inducing shaman’s drum.
As I wound my way through the four mesmerising tracks contained herein, I found my attention focusing on one instrument or one line and following it only to be hooked by another of the many layers built up and persisting through the course of the piece. And it’s here that much of the beauty and artistry of Water Damage lies. The music is dense with droning, repetition, just… noise sometimes. But there’s so much within the sound to hear; individual parts rise out of the melee into the listener’s consciousness only to vanish beneath the (sound)waves again, replaced by something else, over and over again.
There’s an irony here. Water Damage have called this album Repair. But when something ain’t broken, there’s no need to fix it. Now, I really need to keep an eye out for one of their gigs near me.
Label: Cardinal Fuzz | 12XU
Band Links: Bandcamp | Spotify | Instagram
Scribed by: George Green
