AW – THE NERVE (Records Etcetera) (13th Floor Album Review)

AW is Andrew Wilson, one-third of 2000’s formed Ōtepoti band Die! Die! Die!, live, he is usually joined by Tamaki Makaurau musicians Kim Martinengo (Drums) and bassist Morgan Leary (Bass), on THE NERVE, Andrew Wilson took on three roles, vocals, bass and guitar, while Stephan Neville (Pumice & O/PUS) contributed the drums and worked the mixing desk.

I saw AW live on debut (and once or twice since), and they excited me silly, with the space they created within their retro post-punk framework. Thankfully, on THE NERVE, Wilson & Neville have managed to capture the alluring vibrance of AW’s  live shows with their use of a lo fi recording approach.

On THE NERVE, Wilson manages to create without interfering expectations, there’s little chance of chart success, and little radio play past Student Radio. What he (and the others) have created, is an album that captures the individual  joy and rapture of seeing and hearing AW live for the first time, it is an album of lo-fi post-punk taonga.

AW are on a nationwide tour in March, buy the music and experience them live.

Simon Coffey

THE NERVE is out now