French Police is a dark wave, post punk trio from Chicago who released their first EP in 2019. Their last album, BULLY, was a short 20 minutes, but full of synthy, romantic tracks to drive to on fall nights. Austin was lucky to be a stop on their tour this year, featuring the LA based synth pop duo Wisteria as their opener at their October 17th show at Parish.
Wisteria started the night with their song “Young Love”, including a dreamy intro with feminine vocal tracks and a cutting beat. Their dark pop sound was perfectly executed through their foggy dim stage decked with a drum pad, synthesizer, and live vocals. Their songs “Obsession” and “Kiss at Dusk” were standouts live, leaning heavily into darker drums and new wave style riffs.
Photo by Angela New.
Between sets, I got to talk with a few fans up by the barricade. In my experience with goth and dark wave shows people are rabid - even for smaller artists. They travel far, go to multiple tour stops, and line up for merch. We met someone who drove from Phoenix, Arizona to get a record signed for his girlfriend. Another fan said he drove out to San Antonio to see French Police the night before. A father and daughter drove from Killeen to see them that night. A consensus with the people I spoke with is that Austin lacks the thirst for goth music, while San Antonio is “the goth capital of Texas”. Seeing Resound stay on the pulse of dark wave and booking acts like French Police, Wisteria, Mareux, and plenty of others for Levitation Fest gives me hope that Austin can grow its dark wave scene, especially because it’s clear that there’s plenty of desire for it.
Photo by Angela New.
French Police finally rose to the stage: a bassist, singer, and guitarist floating in an amount of artificial fog that would be ridiculous outside of the context of a dark wave show. They began with their song “HER”, from their album BULLY. It was very bass and guitar forward, paired with sensual lyrics, and darkly soulful vocals–a perfect track to set the tone of their set. The next song they played was “En La Noche”, from their first album Haunted Castle. “En La Noche” has a more upbeat guitar riff, but with contrastingly melancholic lyrics–and more notably–Spanish lyrics. Their Spanish/English discography is able to draw in the passionate Hispanic goth scene that bleeds through Texas, and there were people singing along no matter the language. Their Spanish lyrics with romantic themes are reminiscent of traditional corridos/ballads, and the sound of the language perfectly complements the post-punk genre in its gothicness. Haunt Me, Vacíos Cuerpos and Casino Shanghai are some other great Hispanic dark-wave groups worth listening to.
French Police continued their set, playing over 20 songs, with moody lights and fog taking over the stage. They played from all of their albums, and got to most of my favorites, like “HUNNY”, “CLUB DE VAMPIROS”, and “STRESS TEST”. I was very grateful that this rhythmic show, with its sweet crowd and comfortable venue, was the first concert I’ve ever covered for KVRX. Regardless of how shitty the lights and fog made my pictures come out.