Over the course of their four previous studio LPs, Nashville transplants The Ettes have proven to be consistent architects of archetypal, by-the-books, latter-day garage rock. And while pressing, upbeat fuzz rock is still The Ettes' true calling card — "Excuse" is an unapologetic stomp through the garage, for instance — the brand-new Wicked Will finds the coed power-trio dipping their toes into new waters.
The eerie, reverb-drenched, Western expanse of album-opener "Teeth" sets an appropriately sinister and untrusting tone, as frontwoman Coco Hames sings, "Every time you smile, I can tell you're just showing your teeth." Hames' vibrato-adorned and sassily affected croon is more self-assured and intrepid than ever before, and vocal melodies on the choruses of "Pendulum" and "Trouble With You" are enticing, simple and neatly arranged. The two-minute garage-pop pearl "I Stayed Too Late" is a clear standout, with Jem Cohen's supple bass line wrapping sinew around the straight-ahead rhythmic backbone provided by drummer Poni Silver. There's just a taste of Southern flavor in songs like "My Heart," and The Ettes' take on the Lee Hazlewood-penned Nancy Sinatra number "My Baby Cried All Night" is a revealing choice. It certainly makes sense that The Ettes pulled a tune from the '60s, and while the proto-punky, Sonics/Seeds end of the spectrum might seem the most fitting, it's the unapologetic swagger of fellow femme fatale Nancy that spoke to Hames & Co. And it's that very same swagger that adds depth and distinctiveness to Wicked Will.
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