Meet Waco [pronouced way-koh], the London-based “cosmic punks” on a mission to spread a message of love, optimism, and good ol’ punk rock to the masses.
With the release of their new album Deathless imminent, and the quartet currently on a tour of the UK, we caught up with frontman Jak to find out more about the band, what they have planned next, and what exactly cosmic punk means…
What’s the story behind how you guys met and started making music together?
“We all hail from the weirder nooks of the UK – North Yorkshire, Coventry and Jersey – but we came together in London through our animalistic compulsion to make noise and our shared goal to brainwash the masses with our optimism. We have since become best friends.”
Introduce yourselves.
“I’m Jak, I’m the egoistic frontman. We have Chris AKA Flip on the bass, Welshy on beats and bongos and Tom on the Jazzmaster.”
What were your influences/inspirations in getting the band together?
“Sonder, beauty, love, loss, connection, spirituality, freedom, happiness, fear, death and London.”
How was the process of creating your first album?
“The recording of our first record, Sundown, was a very happy and cathartic few days. For the album cover photo we decided to jump into a lake in on an icy British winter morning. It was so outrageously cold that Flip went into a state of shock and delirium. Gibberish spewed out from between his blue lips as we all slipped in and out of hysteria. But we got the photo in the end!”
What, exactly, is cosmic punk?
”[Laughs] Well, we love punk music as much as we love psychedelia, prog, space, conspiracy theories, the supernatural and esoteric teachings. So I suppose it’s an amalgamation of all that.”
How has the tour been?
“This tour has been laced with calamity, from deathly tour vans and broken noses, to flooded venues and cowboy promoters. However, our positive energy and brotherly love have kept it on track. Our spirits and hopes are high and the shows are among the best we’ve ever played!”
What’s been the highlight of your time in the band so far?
“Every day is a blessing for us. We are a brotherhood, having the best time, growing up together and making golden, everlasting memories. My highlight of being in Waco is whatever tomorrow will bring!”
What’s next for Waco?
“We have a new release coming out on Venn Records called Deathless. We are doing some more UK dates this month which we are dead excited about. After that we could reach enlightenment, achieve world domination, unleash spiritual pandemonium or simply disappear into obscurity. I’m sure we’ll find out pretty soon!”
You can catch Waco on tour at the following dates:
Apr 9: Sunflower Lounge, Birmingham, UK
10 Apr: Louisianna, Bristol, UK
11 Apr: Red Rooms, Nottingham, UK
12 Apr: Thousand Island (Upstairs at The Garage), London, UK
