Sly Withers feat Carla Geneve
Lately
Independent
Local garage punks Sly Withers slither out of their garage and stumble across hot-right-now WA songwriter Carla Geneve on their weighty new single. Lately is a testament to the talent pool within Perth’s local scene, and it always brings a smile to hear that Aussie accent so spiritedly roar on a track as nice as this.
Lately begins with a rolling distortion and billows out into a throng of thrashing guitars and meaty drums, with characteristic vocals crying out over the wall of noise. The Australiana drawl of co-frontman Jono crawls out of the woodworks and is met with Geneve’s raw vocals. The pairing of the two West Aussie rising stars at first sounded like a pretty peculiar idea since the artists hail from two divergent and distinct sub-genres of our alt-rock scene. However, the track doesn’t falter from this difference but is strengthened, the collaboration helping the song to have a warmer yet grittier, more earnest sound than their previous releases. Particularly in the bridge the tremors and idiosyncrasies of Geneve’s voice, layered with Jono’s vocals, reinforce that notable Australian angst.
Sly Withers flawlessly negate the thrills and trepidations of relationships, breakdowns, stresses and just generally life as Aussies tryna cope. The force and energy of the song coupled with their vulnerable lyrics create an atmosphere of empowerment. Much like their last release, Sad Guy, which came out at the beginning of 2019, Lately brings forward a heavier, more complete sound since the band’s change of producers around the release of Pleb in 2018.
Lately is a track that comes at you, with a hearty, powerful drive behind each element. Carla Geneve’s voice smokes through the track and proves that collaboration on this song is a smart and bold choice from these two local artists.
EMMA PEET
