MUSIC REVIEW: New single by Scenius:Wild And Wooly

I recently reviewed the debut single from Scenius, namely “Glass Rain” – this single “Wild and Wooly” is the follow up. The band is essentially a collaboration between Steve Whitfield from Leeds and Fabrice Nau of Angers in France.

Their first single was quite a minimalistic track – some vintage synths with a modern mix and some really melancholy vocals from Nau. This single is quite different.

“Wild and Wooly” is much more complex, it retains that whole retro electronic feel which is clearly the bread and butter for these guys. It harps back to those days in the '80s where bands were producing this type of material week after week. I likened the last single to work from the Human League, here Nau’s vocal reminds me a lot of OMD’s Andy McCluskey which in my world is very high praise.

The track has many more layers than their first single but they have retained that element of likeable pop music that is required in this genre. “Wild and Wooly” has a distinctive melody that makes your mind drift into a different world – a world where you feel isolated but somehow in touch with your own emotions. It is very hard to describe that feeling but it makes you want to listen again and again – it is addictive.

A friend of mine asked me whether I enjoyed Scenius because I am a big fan of the electronic era of music. I thought long and hard before answering and there is an element of truth in that statement but there is more to this music than simply replicating that time in the '80s and the potential of where this can go is limitless.

If any of you read my review of “Glass Rain” then you will be aware that I loved it. The fact of the matter is that “Wild and Wooly” has moved Scenius to a new level already. I have heard that they are planning at least another single in the next few months and an album later this year. I can’t remember being this excited about a new band / project for many years and I urge everyone to check out Scenius as soon as they can – I sincerely hope that live dates follow when the world returns to normality and social gatherings are possible.

Reviewer - John Fish