On the surface, at least, Wild Flag’s debut self-titled album is just that: a party on vinyl. Great rock ‘n’ roll records just aren’t made so often these days, and it’s tempting to embrace this rather fun notion of the band. But there’s much more to this story.
The legacy of each member of the band speaks for itself: Weiss and Carrie Brownstein, both formerly of Sleater-Kinney, Rebecca Cole of the Minders and Helium’s Mary Timony. If that isn’t impressive enough, Weiss has also recorded with Quasi, Elliott Smith, Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks and The Shins.
“All of us are experienced,” Weiss said. “We’ve all sort of explored ourselves musically. We’ve gone down some rabbit holes. It’s hard not to come out of that, years of playing and touring, without some self-awareness and confidence—and with a desire to be heard and to reach people.”
And Wild Flag are reaching people. Lots of people. While singer and guitarist Carrie Brownstein took a break from filming her popular television series Portlandia, the band embarked on a successful tour, which took them to Australia and across the United States, culminating with performances at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in April. This whirlwind ride that took Wild Flag from a 7” vinyl EP to a full-length album on Merge Records to a world tour, all in a relatively short period of time, was entirely spontaneous.
“After taking five to six years off Sleater-Kinney, Carrie called me to collaborate with her on a soundtrack,” Weiss said. “We hadn’t played together for so long, it was kind of refreshing to be with someone who you had this shorthand with.”
During the recording sessions, Weiss called in her friend Rebecca Cole to play keyboards for the project, followed by guitarist and vocalist Mary Timony. “We didn’t think we were starting a band,” Weiss said. “We just thought we were having fun. We needed vocals, so we called Mary and she put some vocals on. It was very organic, it just sort of came together.”
But don’t let easy beginnings suggest that this is music that just happens. There is a rare quality to Wild Flag’s music that is seldom seen; a coalescing of instrumentation where each member is active but none kills the groove. It’s widely assumed that all bands play together, but when bands like Fugazi and Wild Flag do their thing, it becomes powerfully clear what playing together really means. At a Wild Flag show, each of these four women drives the song equally.
Wild Flag are a rock ‘n’ roll band, but unlike almost every band of which this can be said, they actually write rock ‘n’ roll songs. That is to say, they do not simply re-construct the same old thing, but instead craft songs that are unique, collaborative and full of power. And as effortless as they make it seem, this cannot be easy. Like Fugazi before them, Wild Flag have achieved the rarest of feats: Four musicians at the peak of their powers, demonstrating not only excellence but also an utterly sincere desire to play music with one another, all for you.
Brownstein begins filming new episodes of Portlandia later this month, which means the band will take a break after playing some music festivals. In the meantime, they are doing their best to enjoy the moment.
“We have four new songs, but I couldn’t say whether we’ll do a new record, really,” Weiss said. “That’s sort of the fun thing about it. When the fall rolls around, we’ll decide what we want to do. It’s exciting. It’s very much a joyous thing.”
Wild Flag’s music is definitely more than just a party; there is a power and intensity that is irresistible. It is indeed a joyous thing, but like all of the best things, this experience takes work.
“Being in a band seems really carefree,” Weiss said. “But it’s a lot of work, and I personally hope that every record I played on achieves something. I want music to be about something. It’s not just a party. I’ll leave that to Prince.”