It takes a certain kind of emotional clarity to put out a song like “Is She Here?“—especially one that dares to dance with grief instead of sitting still in it. But WACK, the psych-dance-rock crew from Vancouver, have never done anything by halves. Here, they manage to channel loss into movement. Not to erase it, not to distract from it, but to make space for it on the dancefloor.
The backstory is crushing: a tribute to a close friend, a fellow fan of moody dance music, who was killed alongside her parents at the Lapu Lapu festival. It’s the kind of tragedy that doesn’t offer catharsis easily. And yet, somehow, this track becomes a vessel. There’s an ache just beneath the beat—nearly somber, not quite pop. It pulses, slowly and intentionally, with a strange defiance. It says: things are not fine, but we’re here anyway.
“Is She Here?” leans on groove, but not for escape. The rhythm is steady, almost meditative, like walking through fog with your head held just high enough. There’s beauty in its restraint—alive, but not exactly joyous. Think early LCD Soundsystem if they traded irony for sincerity, or The Rapture with a heavier heart. WACK have that rare ability to sound big without getting loud, emotional without getting sentimental.
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The band’s makeup itself tells a layered story—members from Nepal, Brazil, Mexico, Indigenous Canada, Ukraine, and Canada, all wrapped up in a five-piece that’s equally at home in sweaty clubs and brooding playlists. Live, they’re known for seamless transitions and raw energy. On record, they’re proving they can hit just as hard in slow motion.
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