“The Motor” by The Wants - A Song Feature

     “The Motor” is a lower case “trinity,” with its three-member formula that constitutes a living unity. The song by The Want may not be God, but from a musical perspective, it’s worthy of worship. “The Motor” has a periodic female voice urging speed, which is first heard around one minute into the song (Let’s go fast). The instrumental accompaniment responds with an intensity shift while remaining distinctive by injecting tension. The bass and percussion combine to establish the song’s rhythmic power, allowing the synth (and guitar) to introduce a feel of stress and uneasiness. The male voice indivisibly joins the female voice and instruments to support the urging of the first and to balance the tension of the second (When my heart beats fast/ As the motor/ I’m calm/ I am calm). It is masterful.

     The Want is a Brooklyn-based trio. Quoting press content, “Using minimal instrumentation of post-punk as their framework, they take that blueprint and run the hypnotic pulse of Detroit techno through the practice of pop songwriting.” The members are Madison Velding-VanDam (vocals, guitar, synth), Jason Gates (drums, live electronics), and Heather Elle (vocals, bass, synth). While talking about “The Motor,” Madison explained:

  ““The track was initially intended as an instrumental, that we adapted over time to include vocals. Whenever we play live, ‘The Motor’ always seemed to be the track with the most immediacy, which inspired us to think further about how we could elevate the track to more than just a live instrumental.

  I first had the epiphany for the spoken word vocals that feature in ‘The Motor’ whilst re-watching the introduction to one of my favourite movies, David Lynch’s ‘Lost Highway.’ In it, racing pavement reveals only level white dotted lines shrouded in darkness as David Bowie croons his sinister, 90s industrial art-rock masterpiece, ‘I’m Deranged.’ Taking elements from this, alongside a general feeling of unstoppable locomotion, we arrived at something that captures a mood somewhere between Cybotron’s ‘Cosmic Cars,’ Kraftwerk’s ‘Autobahn,’ and Nine Inch Nails’ ‘Closer.’"

     “The Motor” is a single from The Want’s debut album “Container,” which will be released on March 13^th. The album is currently available for preorder on Council Records' website: https://bit.ly/2QzhlRL.

     “The Motor” by The Wants

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewantsband/

Bandcamp: https://thewantsnyc.bandcamp.com/

     Tickets are now on sale for The Wants' upcoming Feb / March UK tour dates. See the band live at the following venues from next month. For ticket information CLICK HERE.

Feb 26 - Bristol, The Lanes

Feb 27 - London, The Lexington

Feb 28 - Manchester, YES (Basement)

Feb 29 - Glasgow, The Poetry Club

Mar 1 - Leeds, Brudenell Social Club

Mar 2 - Birmingham, The Sunflower Lounge

Mar 4 - Brighton, The Hope & Ruin