Everybody knows about the British Invasion of the 1960s, where British bands such as The Beatles exploded in popularity in the United States. The unprecedented level of influence and inspiration generated by this phenomena forever changed the landscape of the music industry. It’s truly fascinating how fifty years later, a small Texan rock group could somewhat return the favor. Enter: White Denim.
White Denim was formed in 2005 in Austin, Texas, by James Petralli (vocals/guitar), Steve Terebecki (bass), and Josh Block (drums). The band was founded around the pillars of honesty and uniqueness of sound over being trendy, with James Petralli confirming that “our idea was to be really loud and obnoxious, and very different from the bands who did single-note, fourth-generation Joy Division rip-off stuff!” (Guitar.com) Petralli and Block had met while Block was still performing in a jazz ensemble, and Terebecki had previous experience with the band Peach Train. Leveraging their history with Parque Torche, Petralli and Block were able to secure White Denim’s first gigs, at a venue called Trophy’s. According to James Petralli, Trophy’s was the only venue that would book White Denim at first, stating that “we did at least a year before we really got any gigs Downtown.” (Austin Chronicle) It was at these early live gigs that the band would end up recording some of their earliest media. As early as 2006, White Denim posted some of these live performances to their MySpace page, which was public. These recordings began to pay off in 2007, when the circulation of White Denim’s music through the MySpace service caught the attention of multiple record labels, who were quick to contact the band via e-mail. In an interview with The Austin Chronicle, Petralli noted that while nothing came of these early interactions, “it was a weird thing to know that people liked [the music] and that we could do more of it…”. These recordings ultimately took shape as White Denim’s first EP, Let’s Talk About It.
The titular song from the EP Let’s Talk About It demonstrates Petralli’s aforementioned vision of “uniqueness of sound”. Rather than drawing inspiration from the modern rock music being produced at the time, the vibes behind “Let’s Talk About It” feel more akin to a healthy blend of blues and earlier iterations of punk rock. The song also seems to draw from the psychedelic rock music of the 1960s, particularly in the outro section of the song. The outro of “Let’s Talk About It” slowly breaks down into a chaotic mess, where the guitar falls into an repetitive ostinato and various Latin percussion instruments and synthesizers fill the soundscape to overwhelm the listener. These ideas later led White Denim to their first studio release, Exposion.
White Denim doubled down on their search for their unique sound with the release of their second album in 2009, Fits. The song “Don’t Look That Way At It” employs similar structural and sound elements from the band’s earlier releases, but cranks the crazy factor up to eleven. Whether its the hefty levels of distortion and reverb, the outright glitching effects on the guitar, or the strangely smooth vocal delivery by Petralli, “Don’t Look That Way At It” is definitely a wild continuation of White Denim’s earlier inspirations from psychedelic rock and blues, with the addition of some jazz elements. By the time Fit wrapped up production, White Denim’s fanbase in England had grown so large that the band decided to release the album in the UK ahead of its debut in the United States.
White Denim made the leap from a trio to a quartet with the recruitment of Austin Jenkins for the releases of Last Day of Summer and D, their third and fourth albums respectively. While Last Day of Summer was a self-release intended to clear the band’s slate of song ideas, D was a modern purpose-built album released under Downtown Records. While most of the songs on D resemble the sound design attributed to White Denim’s early work, “Street Joy” resembles more of a calm ballad than an aggressive psychedelic rock song. “Street Joy” may lean more towards the blues and folk side of the band’s sound spectrum, but the reverb and electronic effects are still present. The further blending of folk, jazz and rock is a huge nod to the mixing pot of Texas music culture.
White Denim’s 2016 release of Stiff came with the biggest change in the band’s lineup yet: in a surprise move, Josh Block and Austin Jenkins left the group, with guitarist Johnathan Horne and drummer Jeffrey Olson playing in place of them. “Take It Easy (Ever After Lasting Love)” represents a shift in direction for White Denim, as the song is significantly different from their old status quo. The addition of a funk-derived feel in the drums and strings, soothing synthesizers, and smooth vocal delivery by James Petralli all act to change the way in which the band is perceived.
The most recent of White Denim’s music releases, “Crystal Bullets” (2021) is one of the band’s most musically and technically diverse songs yet. The style emanated in this song doubles down on the funk backbeat concept first realized in “Take It Easy (Ever After Lasting Love)” from the Stiff album. By far the most interesting feature of the track is its utilization of the “chopped and screwed” style pioneered by DJ Screw, who was also a Texas-based musician. In an interview with Songwriter, James Petralli outright confirms that “the track features a sample nod to the famous chopped and screwed production technique made famous by DJ Screw”. The lyrics to “Crystal Bullets” were written by Andy Pickett, a songwriter and long-time friend of Petralli. Petralli says that Pickett has always seemed like “a little bit of an outsider” (Songwriter), but knows that he is “more talented than most people realize” (Songwriter).
“How can we make these things happen in our tracks and make it still feel believable and natural, not super modern, but not totally in the past?”
James Petralli, Songwriter Interview
The delicate balance that White Denim has found in the “unique factor” of their music is largely the result of outside influences from the genres of years past. Many of these genres are connected in some way to Texan culture: psychedelic rock, folk, blues and jazz all had artists connected to Texas in some form. Despite all of these ties to Texas, White Denim has found plenty of success abroad, with their 2016 album Stiff reaching into the top 20 albums in the United Kingdom at the time, as well as being in the top 20 alternative/indie albums chart in the United States.
The path that White Denim has followed is definitely different than most similar artists of the past: despite lineup changes, the band has remained together at its core for over 15 years. By contrast, many Texan rock ensembles of the past have struggled to remain together for any amount of time over a decade. With the recent changes in their style and instrumentation proving to clarify their intentions, White Denim has a bright future ahead of them as an alternative/experimental group.
Sources:
Curtin, Kevin. “White Denim 2.0 – Frontman James Petralli Talks of the Old Days and a New Era.” The Austin Chronicle, Austin Chronicle Corporation, 4 Feb. 2016, https://www.austinchronicle.com/daily/music/2016-02-04/white-denim-2-0/.
Gardner, Josh. “White Denim Are Making the Old New Again.” Guitar.com, NME Networks, 29 Mar. 2019, https://guitar.com/features/interviews/white-denim-james-petralli-side-effects/.
Richards, Will. “White Denim to Release Surprise Vinyl-Only New Album This Friday.” NME, NME Networks, 28 July 2021, https://www.nme.com/news/music/white-denim-to-release-surprise-vinyl-only-new-album-this-friday-3005137.
Walthall, Catherine. “White Denim Experiments with New Techniques & Emotions on ‘Crystal Bullets.’” American Songwriter, American Songwriter, May 2021, https://americansongwriter.com/crystal-bullets-white-denim-premiere/.
“White Denim Biography, Songs, & Albums.” AllMusic, Netaktion, LLC, https://www.allmusic.com/artist/white-denim-mn0001009661/biography.
Bongard, Jo. “White Denim’s Lineup.” White Denim, White Denim, https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/5ae8a203710699ebb8d98dd0/1548818444943-BWDDGUVN6V6TWN8VL0E4/WhiteDenim_JoBongard_wide.jpg?format=1500w&content-type=image%2Fjpeg. Accessed 30 Nov. 2021.
