Consisting of Blur guitarist Graham Coxon and Rose Elinor Dougall, ex-member of noughties girl group The Pipettes, The Waeve couldn’t be further from the music that made them famous. Merging haunting pastoral folk, motorik synths, scuzzy chamber rock, and elements of progressive jazz, the band feels fresher than they ought to as they continue to develop their eclectic discography.
While the band etched themselves into Manchester’s musical history by becoming the first to ever play at the 23,500 capacity Co-op Live when they supported Elbow in 2024, they will have to make do with a smaller audience for their Tuesday night visit to Academy 2. As The Waeves set time nears, a steady stream of fans spread around the sparse, low-roofed venue. I overhear a nearby group complaining about an inconveniently placed pillar that blocks a third of the stage, and I just about manage to manoeuvre myself around it to get a good view as the band takes to the stage.
The Waeve’s catchy new single, “Love Is All Pain”, kicks off the night. Its chiming 80s synths and rampant stabbing throngs get the crowd immediately riled as Dougall switches between keyboard, synth and frontwoman duties. “Hello, Manchester! We love it here,” she exclaims after the track closes to a rapturous reception.
“Broken Boys” sees an animated Coxon hop around the stage while displaying some of his uniquely visceral guitar work as Dougall bashes a tambourine. Fan favourite “City Lights” caps off a high-octane opening trio of tracks, and the 2024 single is the band at its best. It’s a highly danceable ripper with an addictive, sultry chorus that merges mid-70s Bowie, Robert Fripp-style guitar work and splashes of Cardiacs – a band Coxon and his Blur bandmates share a longstanding love for.
“We’re taking it down a notch,” Dougall announces before the band launches into “Undine”. For a track that’s nearly eight minutes in length, it is a widely admired one that merges Coxon’s against-type Saxophone work – a trick borrowed from the New York No-Wave genre – with pastoral horror and lyrics that lean on antiquity, “Ancient tides draw you near, Overwhelm then disappear.”
Propulsive rhythms carry “You Saw”, and its hypnotic grooves compel Dougall and Coxon into dancing around the stage like no one is watching. The lyrics detail destiny and how tiny decisions can have a lasting impact on one’s life. Despite being a teenage super fan of Blur, I only became aware of the Waeve after hearing their debut single, “Something Pretty”, over the speakers of a bar I worked at a few years ago. If I had never heard the song, I probably wouldn’t be standing here now. What else in my life would be different, and where would I be? What tiny decisions did the audience also make that brought them here tonight? As the pair grin at one another mid-jig, it is hard not to feel uplifted and enamoured by the song’s transcendental nature.
My attention drifts to a few stageside super fans clad in The Wave merch who sing every word and tearfully record a compelling rendition of “Over and Over” – a moment that is sure to give Graham flashbacks from his halcyon days with Blur. The track contains a warped blues solo from Coxon and sets an atmospheric mood for “Eternal”, the title track from the band’s new EP.
“Song for Eliza May”, a track written for the pair’s daughter when she was a baby, provides a gentle medieval-infused melody that supplies a vessel for Dougall to display the full range of her plush, velvet vocals. “Drowning” shows the flip side of The Waeve’s musical scope, and it’s hard not to get swept along with the sonic sphere of crashing chaos that ensues in its culmination. Graham must feel the same and claims to be “blinded by the noise” after the track finishes. “Blinded yourself with your own genius…again,” Dougall responds to a chorus of laughs and cheers.
Latter set highlights include the rousing “Moth to the Flame” and “Sunrise”, a song written in support of Palestine, before the band leaves the stage. The audience rallies around for sporadic periods of cheers and whoops, and a few minutes later the band returns for an encore.
“Can I Call You” sees a melodic Dougall-filled opening before Coxon’s driving guitar and charmingly tepid vocals kick in, and “Drauntia”, the night’s final track, has him rolling on the floor, lost in a spellbinding guitar solo, and perhaps blinded by his own genius again. The encore ties up a surprisingly fun-filled affair despite the stark subject matter of some songs and the squalling guitars and haunting synths that permeate their music.
The opposite of Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham singing “Go Your Own Way”, Coxon and Dougall look to one another only during their song’s loving lyrics, and their on-stage chemistry is tangible and endearing. They create an alluring dichotomy against the harsh beauty of their music and, like listening to their self-titled debut, seeing them on stage gives the impression of two people falling in love in real time, exploring difficult themes and constructing a life together amidst the terror, treachery and brutality of nature. Backed by a solid band who never missed a beat, their performance was a memorable one.
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