By Sonia Schnee | Posted August 27, 2019
For the last five years, Jersey Indie has been dedicated to showcasing and promoting New Jersey’s many talented residents. As of late, we are expanding our coverage to also occasionally shine a spotlight on artists from surrounding states. One such group is Wax On, an alternative punk band hailing from Lowell, MA. On August 24th, they released their newest single, “congratulations! (So How Is That Band At the Glitterbox?).” Check out their song here, and then enjoy our interview with Wax On, below!
Who is Wax On comprised of?
Dan Cady - Vocals/Guitar
Nick Capezzuto - Bass
Jordan Collard - Trumpet
Mike Colucci - Drums
Luke Pelletier - Vocals/Guitar
But we’d be very lame without our art team, with Anna Stevens behind concept art and Wiley Bumtail behind the camera.
Tell us about your style. Who are some of your musical influences? Is there anyone you’d like to collaborate with one day?
We’ve been dubbed a variety of things, but the ones we feel best capture what we’re chasing sonically is experimental and theatrical punk. We’d like to think this comes from a blend of all of our individual influences.
Jordan, our trumpet player, reveres veterans like Clifford Brown and Dizzy Gillespie along Dan’s upstrokes and ripping guitar licks (think of Dimebag as a rudeboy).
Meanwhile, Colucci ushers in a mix of percussive inspiration from dudes like big-band baddie Irv Cottler and like Travis Barker.
As far as collaborating goes, it might be cool to cut a record and get feedback with Salaam Remi or Sunny Levine. Or Sylvia Massy. They all produce really amazing records, each with their own particular flavor.
How did Wax On come to be? How did you all find each other? What’s your journey been like so far?
Wax On was Dan’s ska brainchild from high school. Nick joined shortly after. Dan and Nick are both from North Reading so they found each other with a map. The two linked up with Colucci and Luke around the University of Rhode Island. Luke and Colucci had been playing for years before college, so when they both ended up attending URI they just picked up where they left off — now with a dedicated bass player and additional guitarist. Jordan was picked up on the road actually. The band had been playing around Narragansett and Providence. We played a few gigs with this one band, The Broken Few, now defunct. Jordan played drums but filled in on a few of our sets with a trumpet, seemingly from left field. In an attempt to justify our self-branded ska identity, we asked the heavenly horn player to join as an official member.
The journey has been educational, eye-opening, hilarious, difficult at times, but most importantly fulfilling. We’re noticing bits and pieces of what we’d like to call success. Our performances have tightened up dramatically, pun intended. Our newer compositions indicate how much we’ve evolved toward serving the music. We’re making friends that open us up regularly to new perspectives, new ideas. Especially regarding our first 10-day tour, which just recently ended, we’re growing as musicians and as friends.
Your newest single. What’s the inspiration behind the title? What’s the song about? How do you hope people will react to it?
OH...the title….. One thing I (Luke) will always love about music is the novelty elements in music production and distribution. The title is a combination of what we were told upon leaving a super costly social institution versus what we felt like (decipher the acronym in parentheses). On the whole, it's mostly about feeling angry and lost as a millennial. Whether there's a narrative in the lyrics or not, that's up to you. I’d like to think people would agree with the sentiments, but I hope people find the humor in it, too. The song itself is supposed to be as critical as it is funny. Between the obnoxious voice of a sorority girl caricature and the straightforward pop/rock song structure and feeling that accompanies feelings of desolation derived ironically from successfully completing a very challenging chapter in my life, there’s a powerful mix of comedy and frustration. I also really hope folks pay attention to the lyrics close enough to want to listen to other lyrics we’ve written. We’ve toiled in all our music to make sure every word conveys exactly what we mean and delivers in making a moving impact or inspiration on a listener. Lyrics are the most intimate communication between a songwriter and an audience because they marry the worlds of art and language, so it’s super important to us that we’re understood, y’know?
What’s next on the horizon for you? Do you have any shows coming up? Have you played in NJ before/have any plans to tour in NJ in the future?
We have a handful of gigs happening between Rhode Island and Massachusetts, although we'd love to come back to NJ sooner rather than later, maybe before the snow starts falling. We played in Hamilton Township at The Foster House with this sweet band, Parish. I would be willing to make the drive even without playing music to check out our friend Joe's family bakery again. But for now, we’re gonna keep doing what we’re doing, which to mature our image and sound everyday, market it harder, stronger, and encourage the minds and hearts of as many people as possible.
What words of advice would you give to someone who’s got a similar dream or has maybe faced obstacles similar to yours?
Practice.
Meditate before breakfast.
Don’t let discouragement paralyze you, let it push you to do better.
Listen and expand your knowledge of subjects that interest you. Don’t say you don’t like anything unless you’ve invested substantial time in trying it and you’re SURE you don’t like it.
Go to your friends’ shows. They need your support.
Be open to conflict, and seek to resolve it peacefully and intelligently.
Address problems head on but don’t be mean!
Have patience and things will start turning around for you.
Try to tell at least one person that you love them more often.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Magic is real. The subconscious is a physical universe with its own laws and morals that we must learn to access. Jeffrey Epstein was murdered because he had way too much dirt on other powerful humans.
Finally, how can people find you on online (website, Facebook, YouTube, Spotify, etc.)?
Our Instagram account is the most active on the social media spectrum @wax_onnnnnn, however we do keep up to date with our Facebook page. We’ll post updates on gigs, new music and goofy pictures of ourselves. You can find our first full length album, Homework, on Spotify, iTunes, Bandcamp, and all other major streaming platforms.
'Morning Coffee' is a track off our second album "Homework." HUGE thanks to our dear friend, Vernon West, for making this possible. This was some of the most fun we've had as a band, so we hope all of you enjoy it too :)