In
their new single, "Rhinoceros," Wonderlick isn't just strumming chords
but sharpening a horn. Lifted off their fifth LP, slated for release
this August, the song is a cautionary tale cloaked in the guise of an
indie rock jam, featuring absurdist-themed lyrical elements that nod to
playwright Eugene Ionesco's infamous play of the same name. But this is
no theater lecture, as Wonderlick keeps it raw, human, and uncomfortably
relevant.
Longtime band collaborators Jay and Tim again
demonstrate they're more than musicians and storytellers with bite.
Exchanging verses the way they are traded philosophical blows, the song
proceeds, in sound terms, as a sparring match between two figures, the
one fighting desperately to retain his humanity and the other more
quietly, and perhaps even without knowing it, sliding into something
that has a hide to thicken and a spike to grow.
"Rhinoceros" is
driving guitars and uneasy melodies that set and release tension like a
conscience at war with itself. It's indie rock with backbone, dense with
enough metaphor to pick apart on repeat listens, but immediately
accessible due to the band's intuitive chemistry and clear-eyed
lyrics. There's a simmering tension built into each line and riff.
Wonderlick captures how thought creeps in, how it doesn't kick your door
down but slowly seeps into its various apertures, co-opting, reshaping,
and quietly dehumanizing until those of you still standing upright,
still thinking freely, are the "weird" ones.
Jay's voice turns
more insistent, more frantic, "Are you one of us?" he pleads. Not
really, Tim insists, appearing almost to believe his own denial, and to
his credit, "I'm not." You're then left staring into the mirror,
wondering whose side they're on, as the slow, subtle shift in sound
transformation occurs. "Rhinoceros" is a warning wrapped in a groove. In
a universe where the absurd has somehow already ascended to law,
Wonderlick asks us to remain bizarre, remain human, and for the love of
Cod, remain conscious. On this track, they're not just making music.
They do their shouting in just the right place.
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