Oceanwires are a Seattle four-piece fronted by guitarists/vocalists Dave Einmo (Head Like a Kite, SushiRobo) and Aaron Starkey (Gibraltar), and include Samantha Wilder (Princess) and drummer Jeff Baars (Mike Johnson). Their album, that came out last February, was produced by Matt Bayles and Stranger Genius Steve Fisk and was titled There Never Was a Was. It's full of tight, concise songs that ripple with new-wave-era structural tension and familiar rock pleasures. Einmo and Starkey cite Television and Savages as sonic inspirations, and that seems accurate—although I hear some U2-like bravado and Love Battery-esque garage-ramalama in places. by Dave Segal