WVM
At first glance, todays Premiere track, LA Based WVM’s newest single “Sown,” is a bouncy, deliciously electronic throwback to the heyday of 80s synth-pop, echoing the pulsating energy of A-ha and The Human League with a distinct pathos more worthy of Depeche Mode; but that would be to simplify egregiously. In order to understand the track and, ultimately, the artist behind it, it’s most often best to pick their brains and draw out what they’re expressing, which we hope to do today. So take a listen to “Sown,” and it’s very much best listened to a couple times, and read through to get below the skin of this unique and enigmatic electronic artist.
While clearly inspired by a variety of artists and genres, WVM’s music is much more personal and reflective, and driven first and foremost by what he responds to instinctively. It’s as much a reflection of his sense of identity as it is a projection of his artistic voice.
“I started writing "Sown" a year ago or so, I think it was the end of 2015. I was listening to a lot of 80s Prince, Bowie, Phil Collins and Peter Gabriel, and I suppose their inspiration came through. It's like Ozzy Osbourne once said in an interview, he said he doesn't listen to Justin Bieber because what goes in his ear comes out of his mouth eventually. This is very true. So yeah I would say those artists were a huge inspiration for a lot of my new songs, but music is such a deeply personal thing for me, whatever I create has to sound like me and no one else because it comes directly from my heart and soul. I poured all of it in these new songs.”
“Sown” is about WVM recreating the experiences of his earliest, purest forays into songwriting and production, and this shows through in its elegant simplicity. Eschewing modern over-layering and busyness, he’s refined the sound to an unadulterated essence of the genre, but with a distinctively modernized sleekness thanks in part to mixing by the Swedish musician, producer, mixer and programmer Christoffer Berg.
“I am a huge fan of The Knife and Fever Ray, I think they have made some of the most compelling and beautiful music of the last 10 years. It was an honor to have Chris mix my songs. Whenever I listen to The Knife I am always struck by how beautifully the songs are mixed, how the kick and snare sounds or how the vocals sound, Chris definitely has his own stamp on mixing.”
Like many artists, the meaning behind the songs is open to interpretation, because the intention is not only for WVM to experience his music on a personal level, but for listeners to think about and internally draw their own conclusions and connection with that inferred message.
“A lot of my songs are really me and the one I love against the world, I think, especially today, this kind of theme is more and more prevalent. It seems we may be heading into some dark territory as a nation, where people are becoming more fractured and disjointed. I really don't like talking about what a song is about because I'd rather the listener form his or her own opinion; I will just say we reap the seeds we sow, whether that is an extremely good and beautiful thing or a bad one. But the intended message is precisely what the listener wants it to be. It's a deeply personal song for me as are all the new songs, and the metaphors I used won't necessarily be understood by some people because you have to go through certain kinds of things in life to understand it, but that's ok because that's what makes art, it's up to the listener to interpret what I am trying to say.”
But for WVM, meaning varies not only in the musical creations, but in the entire identity of WVM. As much visual artist as electronic musician and instrumentalist, WVM maintains a simplified identity in tune with his beliefs and passions.
"The name WVM is a wavelength, everything in this reality is made of waves from the car you drive to the skin on your bones. What I love about these waves is that they can be molded into anything. The juxtaposition of the W and the M are intentional to remind me everything has it's opposite. The letters can stand for anything you want but it's just WVM."
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