Nashville’s CS Hellmann plunges into the depths of self-confrontation with “Waves Waves”, a sonic storm of industrial-tinged alt-rock released May 8, 2025. Recorded in the isolated intensity of Jared Corder’s Polychrome Ranch studio (nestled in Tennessee’s foothills), the track merges Trent Reznor’s mechanical darkness with Arctic Monkeys’ riff-driven swagger, creating a cathartic clash of psyche and sound.
From its opening bars, “Waves Waves” unsettles with Manson-esque verses—all guttural vocals and sawtooth guitars—before erupting into a Radiohead-worthy pre-chorus, where Hellmann’s bluesy wail (“rolling on you, they’re rolling on me”) mirrors the song’s central duel between conscious and subconscious minds. The one-take guitar work (a deliberate studio choice) adds live-wire urgency, as if each note is being exorcised rather than played.
Hellmann peels back layers of self-deception: what began as abstract blues mutterings evolved into a Socratic dialogue with his own desires. “My subconscious was screaming at me to change course,” he reveals—a theme that pulses through the track’s relentless rhythms and unstable dynamics.
CS Hellmann’s ‘Waves Waves’ is a thrilling plunge into the depths of self-confrontation. This is not just a song; it’s an exorcism of self-deception that demands to be felt.
