Observer Drift's "Warm Waves" reverberate from a Bloomington basement

Photo by B Fresh

​Twin Cities, meet Collin Ward. He's the entire cast of Observer Drift at this point, and things are blossoming nicely for him at the moment. Add him to the exciting stories that originate from just a Bandcamp site and a dream. In Jonathan Garrett's piece in this week's issue, we find that Ward is only 20, and isn't much different than any number of post-teens crashing with their parents. Except that he toiled away to create his stellar debut, Corridors, instead of waiting around for a band to help him out. Today, Gimme Noise is pleased to point a few more eyeballs to "Warm Waves," an undeniable breath of fresh, synth-fused air.

"I hope that when anyone listens to this album they experience a sense of adventure and nostalgia," Ward writes about his project. "The lyrics in this album are heavily based on 3 main things: Dreams that I've had, important people, and memories of my very young childhood." And that nostalgia weighs heavy int the undistorted, bare strumming in "Warm Waves." It would be one thing to write about not forgetting a hometown and the people left behind from the back of a van somewhere, but all of this perspective-rich songwriting comes, impressively, from eight months in the same spot.

In the story, our writer grapples with what Toro y Moi fans like Ward can do in a post-chillwave world, but it's likely that this young talent isn't going to have to worry about that for at least a couple of months. Radio is interested, but he still needs to find a drummer. The live debut of Observer Drift isn't on the calendar just yet, but there will be a couple of us ready to experience it.

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