Meet NY No Wave Supergroup Command V
New York trio Command V may be a new band, with a self-titled debut album on Mush Records, but their pedigree goes back a long way. You see, they're something of a supergroup, at least within the context of the late-'70s/early-'80s No Wave movement that blossomed in the fertile NYC underground music/film/art scene of the era. Command V includes Cynthia Sley, singer for The Bush Tetras, who helped pioneer the downtown punk-funk/mutant-disco sound alongside peers like Liquid Liquid, Konk, et al, guitarist Pat Irwin, formerly of The Raybeats and the Lydia Lunch-led Eight Eyed Spy, and keyboardist/filmmaker Rachel Dengiz, who has worked with the likes of Jim Jarmusch. There are plenty of bands around these days who emulate the music that emerged from the heady heyday of No Wave, but Sley, Irwin, and Dengiz were right there on the front lines of it all, and that experience comes through quite clearly in the songs they create together.
Command V crafts a sound that touches on their shared roots but ultimately points forward rather than reaching into the past for a retro approach. Their album sports some scrappy, post-punk-indebted guitar tones alongside slinky electro-disco grooves and serpentine synthesizer lines, and the images they evoke are extended into the visual realm via Dengiz's directorial expertise. She's created videos for the tracks "Lost On Me" and "Hello" that bring you even closer to V Command's singular vision of New York City. Intrigued? Dig into "Lost On Me," available for streaming or downloading on Soundcloud right now.
