WAAX // Anything & Everything

Almost a year after their hugely successful debut EP Holy Sick, grunge rockers WAAX are back with a vengeance, unleashing their latest single This Everything upon the world and announcing some national tour dates in its wake.

After a rough couple of months of transition and growth both personally and physically for the band, the Brissy quintet are ready to get out of the studio and back onto the road.

“It’s just good to finally have something out again. The prospect of being out on the road and just hanging out is something to look forward to really,” says newly added guitarist Chris Antolak.

“We’ve just been writing and recording a lot and spending a fair bit of time in the studio just hashing new songs out,” adds lead vocalist Marie DeVita.

“We’ve been approaching it a different way. We worked with a different producer and it’s come out in the sound in a really good way. I feel like his producing style compliments our style in a kind of weird but awesome way,” she continues.

“It’s like a juxtaposition almost of how loud and heavy our music’s been, because his production style is not typical to a band like ours,” explains Chris, “He’s done things like The John Steel Singers so it’s like this sweet middle ground where he can rein us in when he needs to.”

This brilliant producer they speak of is of course none other than Mr. Miro Mackie, of Plutonium studios in Brisbane. Miro began his career in music as a drummer and thus has a great understanding of the recording and production process from the musician’s perspective, and this was what attracted the WAAX members to him.

“He’s a whizz in the studio, really. He just has such a great ear for music,” Chris says.

“When Marie would sit down for vocal takes and what not he’d really be listening out for the melodies and really paying attention to what’s being sung, and then suggesting different notes for different parts and things like that. It was really interesting.”

Though their collaboration with Miro in the studio was so intricately fashioned, the writing of This Everything was much more of an organic process, according to Marie and Chris.

“The meaning of the song came second to us fleshing it out,” begins Marie, “Chris and I were hanging out at his place at the time, just listening to a whole bunch of records.”

“We were just belting out all kinds of things for I think four hours straight,” continues Chris, “We just wanted to get inspired by music and it just got to a point where it was just bubbling out of us.”

“It wasn’t even forced. We just wanted to listen to music. Then we just started writing and it kind of spewed out of us. I feel like lyrically it came out of how I was feeling at the time and yeah, at the time I was very overwhelmed with things and I was struggling with my mental health.

Lyrically it’s pretty sad, but it’s written in a way that you can mosh and dance to it. You can attach a whole array of emotions to it [Marie DeVita]

“It was just a really shitty time but we wanted to write a really balls to the wall kind of song, so we kind of meshed the two together. Lyrically it’s pretty sad, but it’s written in a way that you can mosh and dance to it. You can attach a whole array of emotions to it,” finishes Marie.

In support of their new release, WAAX is playing three headlining shows starting in the middle of next month. They’ll be doing back-to-back shows in Brisbane and Melbourne before heading to Sydney to play their final show of the tour.

“It should be good. It’s just a little tour but it’s a good one to get us back out,” says Marie.

“Touring itself is just a tonne of fun. It’s just hanging with your friends for x amount of days, you’re just laughing and shooting the shit all the time, then you’re playing shows at night and getting drunk or whatever and it’s a blast,” Chris says.

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You can get in on the fun and catch WAAX on their This Everything tour, presented by Mucho Bravado and Select Music when it kicks off on Friday 16 September in Brisbane.

Friday September 16 at Blackbear Lodge, Brisbane
With Sinking Teeth, Walken & Tai Sui
www.oztix.com.au

Saturday September 17 at A Day On The Grid At The Curtin, Melbourne
With Horror My Friend,  Heads Of Charm and more
www.oztix.com.au

Friday September 23, Waywards At The Bank, Sydney
(Free Entry)