By Deaglan Howlett | Posted Friday, September 6, 2019
Idle Wave is a project fronted by Guy Battaglia based out of Asbury Park, New Jersey. Since releasing their self-titled EP last December, Idle Wave is back with a music video for their third single, “Calm.” Guy was kind enough to give a behind the scenes look of what went into this raucous track. Thanks again, Guy!
When did Idle Wave form? When did you start releasing music?
Idle Wave is a continuation of a project I started with my friends in college in 2014. However, the first single “Alpern” under the new name was released in December 2018.
Who are your biggest influences?
Originally started out with bands like Green Day and Weezer, but recently [I] have been inspired by DIY bands breaking ground such as Prince Daddy and the Hyena, Mom Jeans, Just Friends, Oso Oso, Remo Drive, etc.
Who is in Idle Wave?
I (Guy) am the primary songwriter, and my friends play shows and record with me sometimes.
How has your music evolved since you first formed Idle Wave?
More honest and to the point.
What was the process like writing and recording "Calm" compared to previous releases?
“Calm” was originally a slow ballad and had a whole other section originally written to it that would have been the climax to the song. Joe Enright (drums) suggested we kick the BPM past 200 since we’ve never written a song that fast before. We cut that last section to try the song without and we were satisfied with the shortened version.
What does this track mean to you? How did you go about writing it?
This song was inspired by that feeling you get when you’re trying to enjoy something and your mind gets dark and all your stresses resurface. Every song on the EP is written around the idea of familiar feelings. This was a song where certain lyrics came to me at different times. Whether winter was fading to spring or I was watching an Avengers movie, these thoughts wouldn’t leave me alone.
The speed of this song along with my exhausted lyrics and vocals has been a great coping mechanism for me as of late.
Kris Khunachak executed a wonderful visual for this song (which can be found on our YouTube channel). We shot the video back in March in his garage where we also shot our music video for “Smoke (Bad Dreams)”. Kris has been carrying the scene on his back, and I can speak for the both of us when we tell you we cannot wait for you to see the latest project we tackled.
I am working on my first full length record and I am self financing it. There are T-shirt’s for sale on our website (idlewaveband.com) and our Self Titled EP is available on Spotify, Bandcamp, YouTube and Apple Music. We hope you enjoy and share with your friends. Hope to see y’all at the next show!