photo by Black Cherry Creative; photo courtesy of Knyvet

Single Reviews of Salem Wolves: “So Desperate” and “November”

Providence, Rhode Island’s Salem Wolves are Gray Bouchard (vocals, guitar), Justin Tisdale (bass), Sam Valliere (guitar), and Steven Shepherd (drums). “So Desperate” and “November” were two of the singles released last year from the band’s The Psychotron Speaks album. I’ve not yet given the full album a listen, but these two singles are a great introduction.

image courtesy of Knyvet

The Psychotron Speaks is a concept album that – and I’m going to quote directly from the press release because it’s pretty bizarre and coolly creative, and I don’t think it’s possible to paraphrase without losing something in translation – “unearths the story of a down-on-his luck ’80s-era pro wrestler named The Stranger, who taps into a mysterious power delivered from an unknowable and unthinkable eldritch device capable of bending the world around it and creating distortion, both aural and psychological.”

With that in mind, “So Desperate” makes sense, though without that background, I probably would have placed the setting of the opening lyrics in a boxing ring, with the lyrics “get a doctor, get a priest” causing me to miss the more wrestling-oriented “caught in a beautiful cage” lyric. (Cage match, I suppose.) But it’s easy to get lost in the album concept in a review, and that’s relatively less important in the grand scheme of things. The real question is “Does this band rock?” And, indeed, based on these two songs, it does in spades!

image courtesy of Knyvet

“So Desperate” uses broad, expansive vocals, unencumbered mostly by matching instrumentation, as the guitars and drums carry the beat in support of the anguished, hope-seeking vocals, stepping in with some nifty riffs where there’s room. Mostly, though, the song has a persistent, moderately anthemic rhythm, pushing relentlessly toward the end. It’s a great rock song, likely to be accompanied with audience fists in the air along with the beat in a concert setting where the crowd is engaged.

Says Bouchard of this song, “‘So Desperate’ is about recontextualizing what should be a moment of triumph as something grimy. If you’re ambitious or a dreamer, it’s easy to just focus on the goal, the stage, that moment in the spotlight when all eyes are on you. You tune out the noise, ignore your screaming muscles and tired bones, and march toward victory.”

Unlike “So Desperate,” which amped up slowly, second single “November” comes in hot, with energetic skinswork backing edgier vocals, with the tempo seeming much faster than it actually is, an illusion driven by aggressive drumming and intense vocal delivery atop a noisy, somewhat chaotic wall of guitar and bass sound. I love when bands do this, but only when done well, like on “November.”

photo by Black Cherry Creative; photo courtesy of Knyvet

Since this is part of a concept record, it’s probably worth sharing Bouchard’s thoughts on “November,” too: “‘November’ is a heel turn. It’s about that feeling of coming in hot after you’ve been away from the game for some time. It’s a heralded return – not necessarily ‘to form,’ but as a means to remake yourself in bloody countenance. It’s about how time and circumstances, sometimes as simple as the changing of the seasons, can influence you and compel you to be harder, colder, and less trusting.”

Anyway, it’s a pair of interesting songs that definitely spark an interest in the full record. Of the two, I think “So Desperate” is more likely to find a broader audience, so if energetic, kinda noisy rock isn’t your go-to style, I’d start with “So Desperate” as your entry point to Salem Wolves’ sound. Regardless, if you like an energetic live show, after hearing these two songs, I can’t possibly picture Salem Wolves’ gigs as anything short of a raucous night of rockin’ fun.