WAX ON!GUFF CATCHES UP WITH THE WAX TO TALK BASS PLAYERS, THEIR NEW RECORD AND A SUMMER TOUR... BUT NOT HOT TUBS. It’s a Thursday night at Michael’s and I

arrive with a Moleskine notebook and an open mind. What a strange lineup. DJ Slumbercat spinning, cat mask in tow; Young River’s alt-country rock; electro indie pop from The Wax, and groovy Weak Size Fish to finish the night. I’m in. I grab a pop and a pre-show interview with Phyl La Ferriere and the rest of the Wax; keyboard player James Spray and drummer Doug Scurfield. Pints in hand, fresh-faced and smiling, La Ferriere, in his soft French-Canadian accent, warns me Spray talks a lot... How low have you been together? La Ferriere – 2009, May or June. [The band has changed many members since then.] How do you write songs? Spray – Generally I bring an idea to the band . . . We have a system, and it works. The record that we’re putting out in spring 2012, [I had] a few ideas, but the songs were more built by the band as a whole. It seems now that we’re streamlined we’ve got a work flow, and things get presented

by me. But Phyl is a writer. And Doug is also a writer. When it comes to beats, he can actually influence entire segments of a song. Technically, I would say there are three writers. It’s a huge boon to have that. But yes, largely, they come out of my shop. What are your biggest influences, in relation to the music you make with The Wax? Everyone name one band. Scurfield – Jerry Granelli. Spray – Coldplay. And Radiohead. La Ferriere – Yeah, Coldplay. What’s the longest you’ve been on the road? La Ferriere – We’ve got about 13 shows booked from here to Ontario from now up to July. We won the emerging artist grant last year, and that’s how we produced our record with Colin Crowell. We’re applying for a second grant, which is promoting the record. [Crowell] worked with JSB, Ruby Jean, Botnek, Rich Aucoin. We wanted that electronic producer. When are you releasing your next album, “Waiting Room”?

RACHEL SUNTERLa Ferriere - June. We’re waiting to have everything together to secure the date. Where will you have the release party? La Ferriere - We’re thinking about doing something special, because we recorded the record in a big, old library. We’re looking at the old Church in the north end, they have that Cathedral kind of thing. We want to make something special for the CD release. Otherwise we could do it at Michael’s, or the Seahorse. What are your challenges, as a group? Spray – We are still a fourth member shy, as it stands right now. We don’t have a permanent bass player, a guy who’s on the same page as all three of us, a guy who’s really invested in the project, who we want to be there at jams. That might be the biggest challenge. And then the social media is still, to me, it’s still a rubic’s cube. Working out how to actually communicate well with people, without just posting your music and saying, Listen. That doesn’t seem to work very well. It’s almost like they need to get to know you as a person, and find you as a

person interesting, and then they’ll be way more receptive to your music, if they know you have a personality. How often do you practice? La Ferriere – Three times a week. Spray – Before a show we ratchet it up, we get in as many as we possibly can, really. Where are you guys from? Spray – We’re all from outside Halifax. I’m from Fredericton. Scurfield – Calgary. La Ferriere – Quebec City. What are your fans like? La Ferriere – We opened for Matt Mays last December. This is the first time I started going to the bars in Halifax, and people recognized me, ‘oh, you’re the guy who opened for Matt Mays.’ The people at Matt Mays really liked us. So the rock kind of crowd really likes us. Do you guys drink before shows? [They have drinks at the table]

Spray – Not heavily, not to the point where you’re inebriated, because you gotta enjoy the moment, ‘cause I want to remember it-- be sharp on stage. La Ferriere – I’ve had some tough moments, in the last months. Spray – Well the problem with these bars, is you always have like two hours to kill before a show, nothing to do, so you buy a beer. When’s your next tour? La Ferriere - Montreal, Fredericton and Ottawa, June 13 to 16. After that, we have to go out West. What are your favourite bands from Hali-fax? La Ferriere – It would have to be the Jimmy Swift Band. The band doesn’t exist anymore, but they’re my favourite band. Spray – Wintersleep. There’s another guy here in town, who’s an electronic artist, who definitely heavily influenced me: Snug. He’s an electronic guru. But his style is very unique, very polished, and I’ve learned a lot from him.

I thank the boys for taking the time to sit and chat and I step aside to let them get ready for their set. Aside from instrumental indie-electro jams, The Wax’s live show involves a crazy, green, fibrous lazer-light and a smoke machine which adds to the eletro-vibes they lay down. The message is clear: Welcome to Evolve, it’s time to dance. La Ferriere’s high, brassy vocals remind me of the Weakerthans and Wintersleep and he leads the band comfortably. Scurfield’s drum skills are sharp and steady and Arsenault, who is DJ Slumbercat without the mask – has great energy, smiling as he pulls out some slap-bass or some killer keys. Though musically, there’s nothing new here, the Wax’s sound is a conglom-erate of existing genres performed with excellence. I won’t be going home to listen, but I would pay to see them again. Be sure to keep an eye out for their new record and CD release party, for now, you can check them out here: http://www.myspace.com/thewaxmusic

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THE WAX PLAYING MICHAEL’S STAGE LAST THURSDAY NIGHT.