{"id":68830,"date":"2018-08-30T14:00:13","date_gmt":"2018-08-30T13:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/?p=68830"},"modified":"2018-08-30T14:05:51","modified_gmt":"2018-08-30T13:05:51","slug":"interview-wstr-aug-2018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/interview-wstr-aug-2018\/","title":{"rendered":"Evolving Identity – WSTR"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"WSTR\"
Photo Credit: Ben Gibson<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“Our old stuff was technically pop-punk but it was a certain type\u2026 our minds weren’t working like that any more”<\/em><\/h2>\n

Having quick-fire success can have its pros and cons. For Liverpudlian group, WSTR<\/strong>, being on the receiving end of the instant recognition in 2015 opened many doors for the quartet. Shows alongside names such as Neck Deep, Creeper, Roam and Trash Boat placed the band next to some of the UK’s brightest up-and-coming bands. Likewise, their debut EP (‘SKRWD’<\/em><\/a>) and album (‘Red, Green or Inbetween’<\/em><\/a>) put them on the upper echelons of a burgeoning UK pop-punk scene. However, their rapid rise hasn’t all been plain sailing so with their second full-length, ‘Identity Crisis’<\/em>, WSTR<\/strong> look to find their feet.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur old stuff was technically pop-punk but it was a certain type, almost underground, modernized pop-punk that I think we did pretty well but we wanted to expand,\u201d<\/em> states vocalist Sammy Clifford in the lead-up to ‘Identity Crisis’<\/em>‘ release. \u201cOur minds weren’t working like that any more. It wasn’t coming out like that, we had done that. It’s a natural progression,\u201d adds Sammy on the making of the record.<\/p>\n

While Clifford, along with guitarist Tom “Boots” Hawkes, admits \u201cthe roots\u201d<\/em> of being a pop-punk remain on ‘Identity Crisis’,<\/em> it sees WSTR<\/strong> evolving their sound embracing big earworm hooks, streamlined songwriting and hints of organic growth. \u201cWe worked more on the science of songwriting, where to leave people hanging, where to bring it back. It feels more mature,\u201d<\/em> Clifford explains.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel I’ve simplified things. I wasn’t too scared to be myself and make things stripped-back. The lyrics are more to the point. They’re not really concentrated on “being pretty”. The use of metaphors are still in there, but it’s more simple and universal. It’s easier to digest to more people.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

As a whole, ‘Identity Crisis’<\/em> is a more focused effort that isn’t anchored by clich\u00e9s with a sharper, fuller sound. Tracks such as ‘Bad To The Bone’<\/em> and ‘The Latest’<\/em> are energetic and delivered with snotty confidence. Whereas ‘Silly Me’<\/em> and ‘Hide Everything Sharp’<\/em> highlight their willingness to deliver driving rock choruses. That hunger to deliver anthemic songs was something that sparked Clifford’s thoughts while he was writing the record:<\/p>\n

\u201cWe listened to bands that we wouldn’t really have thought of before like Oasis and My Chemical Romance, big bands that play stadiums. We questioned ‘why or how are they doing that? What makes those songs so big?’ We just wanted to make our songs bigger and better.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n