Oh Wonder is a Wonderful Band

A few weeks ago I found what might be considered my new favorite band. Or at least, my favorite new band. 

Oh Wonder has only been playing shows live for a bit over a year, and the two members, Josephine Vander Gucht and Anthony West,  have only been making music together for a little over three years. The two used to have their own projects, but after getting to know each other they decided to create music together. This decision has led me to be very happy. 

The London-based duo got their start by posting one song a month for a year on the internet.  I missed out on the original releases of the songs that encompass their debut self-titled album, but when I first heard Without You on YouTube while sitting at my desk I fell in love. The subtlety of West's voice under Vander Gucht's creates an elegant and mellow sound that is backed up by a melodic drum, keyboard, and electronic beat. 

I listened to Without You on repeat for days, and didn't delve much further into Oh Wonder's music repertoire until a few days later. My current favorite song of theirs is Drive. The lyrics and the music video don't quite match, as music videos are wont to do, but both are pieces of art. The song is about a relationship that didn't end well and hasn't quite ended completely yet. The music video is about a partially crazy person, played by Vander Gucht, who comes across a figment of her imagination while driving around. The imaginary man, played by West, gets her to do all sorts of thievery and bad deeds. 

Other songs, like Livewire and Body Gold are also amazing, still full of mellow voices and piano melodies. Not only are their voices and melodies magical, the lyrics in their songs are beautiful and well chosen. In an interview the duo shared that some of their songs have taken as little as 15 minutes to write. To have the talent to create something so beautiful so quickly must be a wonder. 

Oh Wonder if my favorite new band of 2015/2016 and anyone interested in calming beats, wonderful voices, and meaningful lyrics should check them out.