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From the Oi Polloi archives: Wooden Shjips played Manchester's Sound Control on Thursday 12 July 2012. Here's a look back at the band, the music and a venue that's sadly no longer with us.
Those San Fran fuzztone specialists, Wooden Shjips, sailed down the ship canal on 12 July 2012, docking at Sound Control for another killer Now Wave stageshow.
If Wooden Shjips aren't already on your musical radar, they're a four-piece psychedelic rock outfit from San Francisco with a fondness for fuzzy guitars, hypnotic rhythms and the sort of songs that can send your mind wandering off somewhere without your feet ever leaving the floor.
The band came together in 2006, with Ripley Johnson on guitar and vocals, Dusty Jermier on bass, Nash Whalen on organ and Omar Ahsanuddin on drums. Taking inspiration from the more far-out corners of rock music, they built a sound around repetitive grooves, distorted guitars and swirling organ sounds. Think Spacemen 3, Suicide and The Velvet Underground, then add a generous helping of Californian sunshine and guitar fuzz.
Wooden Shjips and the West Album
When they rolled into Manchester in July 2012, Wooden Shjips were touring off the back of their 2011 album West, released through Thrill Jockey Records.
The record was their first to be made in a recording studio with an engineer, Phil Manley, rather than being put together in their rehearsal space. Tracks such as 'Black Smoke Rise', 'Crossing' and 'Lazy Bones' brought their trademark mix of driving basslines, fuzzy guitar and motor-like rhythms into slightly sharper focus.
Not exactly background music for a quiet Sunday lunch, unless your Sunday lunches tend to involve large amplifiers and a fair amount of head-nodding.
Ripley Johnson also plays in Moon Duo, another outfit with a healthy appetite for repetition, psychedelic sounds and guitars that don't know when to stop.
Wooden Shjips at Sound Control, Manchester
The Manchester gig took place on Thursday 12 July 2012 at Sound Control on New Wakefield Street, with Hookworms also on the bill. It was part of a short UK run that took in Bristol, Wrexham and Sheffield before Wooden Shjips headed to Latitude Festival in Suffolk.
Sound Control was one of Manchester's better-known independent music venues, with three floors and a steady supply of bands and DJs passing through its doors. It closed in December 2017 and was subsequently demolished, so this old gig announcement is also a small reminder of a place that disappeared from the city's music scene.
The original show was promoted by Now Wave, and the poster artwork was by Savage Wolf.
Wooden Shjips on Video
For a taste of what Wooden Shjips were doing around this period, here's the video that accompanied our original gig announcement.
Tickets were available on the door for the original gig, but that particular ship sailed back in July 2012. Sound Control may have gone, but the records are still out there.
Original poster artwork by Savage Wolf.
For more about the band's music, have a listen to Wooden Shjips' West album.