Five years in the making, Ruthless – the debut LP from Wisconsin’s Waldemar – is a beautifully atmospheric album of Indie Rock with elements of folk and Americana mixed throughout.
The vision of singer-songwriter Gabe Larson, Waldemar takes its name from his grandfather. The band is filled out by Larson’s brother, Nick, drummer Colin Carey, guitarist Josh Garcia, John Roemhild on bass and Jordan Coffland on keyboard. The album was written and recorded over the span of five years inside an old barn they had converted into their own recording studio.
The result is a mostly satisfying collection of deeply personal introspection weaved throughout lush instrumentation. “I found myself in a season of deep uncertainty,” said Gabe Larson. “Everything was in question. I had deep fears that all I thought I knew about the world, family, politics, spirituality, ultimate reality, who I can trust etc. perhaps was wrong. Many questions still remain, but I’ve been slowly finding a strange peace in knowing that life is always lived amidst uncertainty and the only way forward is trust.”
Despite the deeply personal nature of a lot of the songs here, there are universal themes throughout that are relatable to many. The title track is one of his most impressive both musically and lyrically (“I’m giving up my giving to statues who never speak/I’m giving up my singing to specters who never cease”). One of the most powerful songs on the album comes towards the end. The eponymous track “Waldemar” focuses on Gabe’s dealings with depression and written after his last band went through an acrimonious break-up. He wrote the song through the lens of his grandfather, a man he admits he wanted to be closer to. Delicately sung over acoustic guitar, the song is an artistic highlight.
While there are powerful issues covered throughout the album and the band handles them deftly with hauntingly beautiful playing, the weight of the subjects can be overwhelming at times. But Ruthless is bound to find its audience.
2 Responses
I just stumbled upon *Waldemar* on TV of all things. They ran through two songs, one of which was *Limbo*, which I found quietly familiar. Their musicianship is on passionate display as they seemed to melt into their songs as they played. An impressive debut from my angle.
The music is okay, not groundbreakingly original or anything. I dislike Gabe, mostly for proclaiming himself a ‘blue-collar poet’ when I know for a fact that his parents gave him a house with a property big enough to have an old horse barn on it. In fact they gave him a duplex so he has always been able to rent the other side out for extra cash, you know like… all the blue collar people do. As for his job sanding floors first place I ever knew he worked was Shift Coffee shop. In fact he’s still on the Shift website holding a teapot. Kind of douchey to say you grew up Bruce Springsteen when in truth you had a silver spoon in your mouth from early on. Larson has always been extra full of himself in my opinion.