Album Review: WWII by The White Wires

Ottawa trio White Wires really want you to think they like the Ramones—for starters, there’s that blitzkrieg of an album title, as well as a suggestion to go to the beach, the obligatory pop-punk song about high school and, hell, even an encounter at 53rd and 3rd. And while there’s no doubt that the Wires—singer/guitarist Ian Manhire, bassist/singer Luke Martin and drummer Allie Hanlon—love Da Bruddas, on their sophomore offering, WWII, their flag is firmly, and winningly, planted in the power-pop-class-of-‘79 soil originally claimed by the likes of the Undertones and the Pointed Sticks (yes, it’s a mere half-a-jump from the Ramones to the ‘Tones, but if you keep track of these things, you know there’s a difference). And, as a band that has called both Dirtnap and Douchemaster Records—two of the music world’s chief proponents of modern-day power-pop-punk—home, these Wires know of what they speak.

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Front- or backloading an album has been a problem since recorded music was pressed on to full-length albums. Too often, a record will burst out of the gate with amazing momentum, only to peter out in its second half, or vice versa. In the modern age, cherry-picking tracks for playlists has become much easier, in that you only need to nab the first chunk of tunes on albums afflicted with this issue.

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Been there, done that is one way to describe the sun-soaked garage-punk heard on The White Wires’ sophomore effort WWII. The Canadian trio of Ian (vox/guitar), Luke (bass/vox) and Allie (drums) dive head first into a playful and melodic, yet somewhat formulaic, mix of sun-soaked garage-punk. The power chords are crisp, executed with a youthful enthusiasm and seasoned with just the right amount of fuzzy pop.

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