I’m not so sure it was necessary for San Francsico/Philadelphia band Whirr to have named this particular song “Heavy.” It is from last year’s album Sway (on Gravefrace Records). As I’m listening to it through my Netbook’s tiny tinny speakers, the thing is massive, pouring out over everything in the room, making the label superfluous. Whirr, too, is well named. Like the musical equivalent of several thick ingredients put on high cycle in an industrial blender, the result is a cacophonous aural assault. But in amongst the sheer density of sound is some pretty, fuzzy melodic shoegaze that swirls all around you, mixing you in so that you lose sense of time and space.

For all the tightness of their sound, Whirr is one of those unlikely bicoastal bands. After touring in 2013 with Philadelphia band Nothing, Whirr bassist Nick Bassett and Nothing’s Dominic Palermo formed Death of Lovers, and Bassett ended up remaining on the East Coast, where he also became Nothing’s permanent bassist. Sway, as a result, was composed on both coasts, with the rest of the band in San Francisco. What ended up happening with that geographically challenging situation has been the entire band contributing to the album’s material and arrangements. Sway was produced by longtime collaborator Jack Shirley.

When you’ve peeled yourself off the wall, have a listen to their lovely 2013 album Pipe Dreams.

Their tour begins in Denver on April 2 and moves across the U.S. to end in Oakland, California on April 25. See below for East Coast dates. At the Cambridge show, they’ll be performing with Adventures and Funeral Advantage. If zoning out while you’re bulldozed by a wall of sound seems like the perfect evening, you should definitely catch these guys. And bring earplugs. With a name like Whirr, it’s bound to be loud. Safety first, folks.

Whirr – East Coast Shows

April 8 – New York, NY @ Baby’s All Right
April 9 – Cambridge, MA @ Middle East Upstairs facebook event :: BUY TICKETS ::
April 10 – Washington, DC @ DC9
April 11 – Philadelphia, PA @ Ortlieb’s (early all ages)
April 11 – Philadelphia, PA @ Ortlieb’s (late +21)

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