Patio Unplugged: Wildfire has a feel-good, versatile sound, courtesy its vocalist-guitarist duo

The temperature dipped a bit in December, but as soon as you spin ‘Shadows’ by Wildfire, “the cold disappears”. An offshoot of two bands, the set they played for Patio Unplugged spread a warm vibe. ‘Shadows’ speaks of love. ‘You Called’, inspired by ‘Ocean Drive’ by Duke Dumont, takes you down the memory lane. There is a former partner sub-plot, but the groove is more catchy. When played back-to-back, the songs weave together quite a story of love and its aftermath among the millennial generation.

Two vocalists, with extremely different tones, are the real players behind the versatile sound. It also reflects in the songwriting. The stories have a rise and fall. And the vocal duo can also play the guitar — a win-win situation for a band. ‘Shadows’, as the wild group of boys say, explains an act of lovemaking in darkness. Intense and bold, but with a lot of sugar to it. The song is poetically written with a cinematic vision. When the vocalist breaks out, “Our shadows danced under the moonlight,” you can actually see a silhouette of two lovers embracing each other. The acoustic guitar pulls and bends compliments the testosterone fluctuations. To maintain the gravity, the climax-laden “Oh baby!” could have been avoided. The song, minus this part, is vocally a top track. At times, you need to be subtle. The band, however, smartly balanced it with a heartfelt starting line such as “Lying right next to you, I heard your soul talk.” ‘You Called’ scores on the style of singing and the time signature. Apart from Dumont, there is also a bit of Porcupine Tree in the overall feel. The lyrics are straight out of your WhatsApp chatbox.

This song also shows the tightness of the band. The bass and drum section literally hold the transitions. The drummer gets to express his creative freedom – breaking the time – at the right seconds. Overall, Wildfire is ‘feel-good’ — a band you would like to hear out on a Friday night. They know their limitations and they have worked on their strengths. Watch Wildfire speaking about their music, and their songs ‘ Shadows’ and ‘ You Called’