Ward - Light and Noise

Ward

Light and Noise
self-released; 2016

3.6 out of 5

By Jamie Funk
​

Ward is a three-piece band from Los Angeles that recently released a four-song EP entitled Light and Noise. They are a certified rock band that take influence from bands ranging from Echo and The Bunnymen to Velvet Underground.

Light and Noise is a fairly straightforward EP all things considered. Their style feels very broad in general. It doesn’t feel in the least bit niche which could be a good or bad thing depending on how you look at it. I thought the songs were well-written and the things that stuck out most were the vocals. There were some catchy hooks and I found the vocals very palatable. 

I would have liked to have heard these songs be a little more polished from an engineering perspective. The songs sound better than a live recording but fall short of a commercial release. That being said I thought the songwriting was still easy to appreciate. 

The EP starts with “Soothe The Soul” which is actually quite soothing. I picked up on an ’80s rock vibe on this song. Something about that anthemic chorus. Overall a really solid track if a tad predictable.

The band has more success with “Light and Noise.” I thought the song was the most single worthy of the batch and arguably the most catchy. “Dirt” is a hard rocking effort while the closer “Velvet Walls” reaches for some pretty epic heights.

​I think this EP shows a good amount of potential. The band certainly has some talent and with some tweaking in the production department they could  get to another level.

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