Bodywash - “Massif Central”

SXSW 2023 - OEB Score: 7; Popularity Index: 4

Pairs Well With…Just Mustard, Sonic Youth, Beach House

Part shoegaze rock and part new-wave pop, Bodywash finds a sound that is subtly catchy under waves of reverb-laced guitar and post-punk inflections. Pull back those intentional layers and Bodywash becomes a breezy indie rock band, but the layers are kind of the point. It’s impressive how Bodywash can sound both full and melancholy on recent singles “Kind of Light” and “Massif Central”, tracks that show clear evolution in terms of both detailed production and emotive moods beyond their 2019 full-length debut Comforter. Both songs will feature on the Canadian duo’s upcoming sophomore effort I Held The Shape While I Could, a record that could grow Bodywash’s audience if the rest of the album is as strong as these two hypnotically connecting singles. Bodywash showcases at Hotel Vegas Friday night for The Nothing Song. (Kevin McStravick)