By now it is no secret that we here at LOUD WOMEN are massive fans of the young trio from Hastings that is HotWax. We have been following them a while and in early 2021 we tipped them as some of best the Young LOUD WOMEN to watch. We perhaps had not anticipated that they would rise quite so high quite so fast – however one listen to their second EP, Invite Me Kindly will make you understand that all the attention and success is utterly warranted and deserved.
The EP is packed with 5 tracks that are all stars in their own right – no fillers here. The band confess to be majorly influenced by 90s bands and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, so for them to work with Alan Moulder makes so much sense. The press release speaks of him working with the Foo Fighters and Wet Leg but for me this misses the point: Moulder has famously worked with groundbreaking bands such as My Bloody Valentine, Nine Inch Nails, Smashing Pumpkins, Lush AND the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. This history combined with HotWax’s fiercely good song-writing style makes for a powerful combination. You can hear flavours of all these influences coming through strongly in the tracks but the songs are 100% HotWax – vibrant, fresh and energetic.
High Tea is the first track on the EP and the band’s latest video release -–directed by Lillie Eiger.
The song lurches into being like Joan Jett meets The Ting Tings. It chops and changes between sections splicing moments of space and bass driven beats with choruses of explosive cacophony. The band here showcasing how their song writing skill is maturing to match their musicianship. Each band member getting their moment to shine.
Phone Machine was released as an advanced gratis track a month ago accompanied by a video devised by the band themselves. I love this track – perfectly driven by a hypnotic bass riff with Courtney Love-esque vocals in the verses giving way to choruses that are more melodic but still with plenty of angular attitude.
Drop is my favourite, opening with fuzzing bass and almost spoken vocals before crashing into a noisy chorus which pulls back nicely to the verse. Peaks and troughs with accents and flourishes are the way to go as this lot know, as does Moulder, all too well.
E Flat was first performed live at All Points ( I believe) as Team LOUD WOMEN were there to witness. I love how this band have become one of coolest on the planet born out of being the misfits at school and the hook lyric in this song is ‘I just want read a book book’.
She don’t like it further showcases their ability and range at songwriting – again we get echoes of Courtney Love and Hole but the song jerks into something else that has tones of Smashing Pumpkins but in the end is all their own.
It is hard to imagine how the band can get much better but I have no doubt they will. What makes it all so easy to fall in love with them is their humility. They are endlessly talented but show no self awareness of this. The songs and the trio’s musicianship is full of raw energy and truth, but not ego, which is a rare and lovely thing. HotWax are their own kind of cool as this EP demonstrates so well.
Invite Me Kindly is available now on a Marathon Artists. The vinyl sold out within hours of release but the EP is available on all streaming platforms.
HotWax are touring with Royal Blood:
Oct 30, Dublin, 3Olympia Theatre, With Royal Blood
Oct 31, Dublin, 3Olympia Theatre, With Royal Blood
Nov 9, Los Angeles Ca, The Wiltern, With Royal Blood
Nov 10, Oakland Ca, Fox Theatre, With Royal Blood
Nov 11, Santa Cruz Ca, The Catalyst, With Royal Blood
Nov 13, Seattle Wa, Paramount Theatre, With Royal Blood
Nov 14, Vancouver Bc, Queen Elizabeth Theatre, With Royal Blood
Nov 15, Portland Or, Crystal Ballroom, With Royal Blood
Nov 17, Salt Lake City Ut, Union Event Centre, With Royal Blood
Nov 18, Englewood Co, Gothic Theatre , With Royal Blood
Nov 20, Tulsa Ok, Cain’s Ballroom, With Royal Blood
Nov 21, Dallas Tx, South Side Ballroom , With Royal Blood
Nov 22, Austin Tx, Acl Live At Moody Theatre, With Royal Blood
Nov 25, Albuquerque Nm, Sunshine Theatre, With Royal Blood
Nov 26, Phoenix Az, The Van Buren , With Royal Blood
Nov 27, San Diego Ca, The Sound, With Royal Blood
Nov 28, Los Angeles Ca, Zebulon
Nov 30, New York City NY, Mercury Lounge
Dec 15, Bexhill-on-Sea, De La Warr Pavilion – Music’s Not De
