Following up last year’s “Up and Down,” California punk bands Wavves and Culture Abuse’s newly released single “Big Cloud” takes a more sedate tone while keeping with both bands’ respective styles. While “Up and Down” was a short, jaunty shot of surf punk in the vein of early Wavves albums like King of the Beach, “Big Cloud” takes a slightly different approach featuring less distortion heavy guitar and emphasizing David Kelling’s vocals over those of Nathan Williams. Culture Abuse’s contributions to “Big Cloud” are far more apparent than on “Up and Down,” with the new single’s more pensive brand of punk rock resembling Culture Abuse singles like “So Busted” that capture the same attitude as some of their more raucous pieces but pair it with a cleaner, less cluttered sound. Wavves’ influence is sparser, but Nathan Williams’ harmonies during the chorus still stand out as crucial elements of the song. As fractious as California punk can be, Wavves’ collaboration with Culture Abuse has certainly proved fruitful, and “Big Cloud” is worth a listen as the days get longer and warmer here on the opposite coast.
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