Wax Head are a drummer-fronted punk quartet from Manchester. Their first EP Salt Fat Acid Heat, was mastered by JJ Golden (Ty Segall, Osees). Latest single ‘Rusty Cutter’ followed on Sour Grapes Records, bursting with garage psych and punk energy.
How did you get together and where did band name come from?
The band came together gradually at the University of Salford. Lewis and Harry met through their mutual friend Oscar. The band later expanded when Archie joined on keys. We have had three bassists in our time; when our previous bassist Kip, who played on our debut EP sadly left, we were lucky to have our good friend Ev take over. It worked out perfectly for us as Ev was the right fit for the band. Nice way to pass the torch and keep it in the family. The name Wax Head, however, came out of thin air. We thought it sounded cool.
What is your creative process? Music or lyrics first?
Our creative process is constantly evolving. Songwriting for us can vary from sharing unfinished ideas, improvising with each other and coming to practice with whole tracks written. Lewis writes lyrics about the weird things his sick mind conjures up…
A lot of stuff about bugs.
A lot of stuff about death.
What is your main inspiration?
Individually we’re inspired by all sorts. A Wax Head set can hurtle through noise music, 60s garage, psychedelia, punk and even some jazz influences.
What is your favourite independent music venue and why?
We would all agree Big Hands is our favourite venue in Manchester. It’s the best place for psych rock, punk and garage; as well as being where we met our label Sour Grapes. It’s where we (and so many great bands) started and we have so much love for that place.
We’re seeing you for the first time at Left of the Dial in Rotterdam. What can we expect from your live show?
You can expect a lot of sweat, energy, noise but mostly raw, chaotic garage psych.
What is the story behind the black and white photo for latest single ‘Rusty Cutter’!
Lewis put his drum kit in the crowd to play the final song of our set. Without any of the band noticing a random guy lay on the floor, sticking his head deep into the kick drum. We are not sure why he did it but it made for a great show and photo.
What are your plans for the rest of 2024?
The rest of 2024 is for writing and playing. We are psyched to start our first European tour this October and we can’t wait to share our music with mainland Europe.
If we looked in your fridge right now what would I find?
Currently in my fridge I have root vegetables, hummus, a human head, chicken and asbestos.
