Wet Hair

Wet Hair grew from the ashes of long-running Iowa City, Iowa noise collective Raccoo-oo-oon, begun as a solo project by Raccoo-oo-oon founding member Shawn Reed in the final months of his band's existence. Wet Hair strayed from the often improvised and rhythmic currents of Reed's former band, opting for colder tones and synthesizer experimentation on the earliest recordings. Soon the band expanded to a duo with the inclusion of former Raccoo-oo-oon member Ryan Garbes on organ and live drums. The duo toured and recorded frequently, employing tape manipulation and heavily effected vocals in an experimentally minded approach to psychedelic pop. Along with a smattering of miscellaneous releases, Wet Hair released the more realized full-length Dream on the Not Not Fun label in 2009, followed the same year by the limited Glass Fountain album. The band had a string of split vinyl releases over the next two years, sharing sides with contemporaries like Peaking Lights, Rene Hell, and Naked on the Vague. Leading up to 2011's In Vogue Spirit, the band included third member Matt Fenner to augment the core sounds of Reed and Garbes. Fenner was soon replaced by Justin Thye and the trio released Spill into Atmosphere in 2012, refining their noisy roots into an increasingly pop-informed sound.