Today we’d like to introduce you to The Wax Worms. Them and their team share their story with us below:
The Wax Worms started as a one-man project in 2017. I (Max) dropped two demos on Soundcloud (“Ahh” and “Lovely Zadie”) as The Wax Worms and started to play our songs at the Churchill’s Pub open mic every Monday for about two months after that to look for members. Over the next five years, we grew to become a six-piece, fully DIY, independent band. Three of us live in our makeshift home studio in Cutler Bay, FL, and that’s where we write, record, mix, and film all of our stuff. The home studio was a big, big up for us. It really helped us define our sound and get things right. Since we’re DIY, it takes a lot of time to do a lot of things, but we’re happy that we can do everything on our own now with the gear we’ve acquired over time, but above all, we’re happy because the DIY life taught us how to be resourceful. Now we can make our silly little pop songs whenever we worms want.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Definitely not smooth, but I wouldn’t say rough. People liked our songs right away, but there were a ton of struggles that prevented those songs from having the same effect at every show. We were all learning how to be in a band, how to play for people, how to record our stuff, and then we were navigating all the curveballs that life throws at you: jobs changed, schools changed, priorities changed, and therefore, members changed, too. I think on two separate occasions, the majority of our members quit, and Ale and I found ourselves alone in his room trying to record the same crusty EP we’d been trying to record for a hot minute. And then we just started finding members all over again. And all this on a $0 budget. So, not smooth by any means, but not the roughest because we’re still here, clearly. And we’re not a bunch of cynical losers, either, so our obstacles haven’t hit us too hard, I’d say.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
SO, The Wax Worms are a six-piece, fully DIY, psychedelic rock band from Miami, FL. The current members are: Max Harrison (vocals/guitar), Alejandro Quevedo (keyboard/production), Ryan Garcia (lead guitar), Caleb Carr (drums), Jesse Velasquez (bass), and Wyatt Bergwin (guitar). 60s/70s traditional songwriting and world music are the inspiration, and then laidback dream pop melodies called “rock ‘n’ stroll” are the result. We call it “rock n’ stroll” because it’s probably very nice to walk to and dream to, but you can’t mosh to it, really. We like to write about relatable topics in a surreal and naive way because it lets us be weird and psychedelic, but it also lets us keep our sense of humor. We like rockstars as much as the next guy, but we just don’t wanna act like that. Crowd-surfing and getting hammered – yeah, sure. But you can check the ultra-cool-guy ego at the door.
Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
1. Go to shows as often as you can, and chat people the hell up.
2. If everyone around you likes what you’re doing, great, but continue to seek criticism. In that same vein, the only one whose opinion matters about your art is yourself. If nobody liked what you were making, would you still make it? If the answer is “yes”, then you should make it anyway because it’ll give your life purpose.
3. Saved the best for last: DO NOT, under any circumstances, be a jerk or a cocky, narcissistic lunatic. Always be nice and stay humble. It’ll make you a better person. It’s a local music scene, not a competition and not the Grammy, so be neighborly.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://thewaxworms.com/home
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/thewaxworms
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewaxworms
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/thewaxworms
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCT9SkLtHSZ1yfZC-tUZpHpg
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/27hTtRapuCpHb6D5GavVS3?si=w7w_oGhQR2i7GPUV3b8u6A
Image Credits
Fisheye Photos: Noah Davalos (@noahdavalos) B&W Live Show Photo: Andrea Sofia R. Matos (@andreasofiarmatos) Studio Film Photo: Ethan (@usedbread)
