Call ‘em anarchists call ‘em dirty punks, just don’t call ‘em a side project.
White Wives, comprised of Chris #2 and Chris Head from Anti-Flag, Roger Harvey from Dandelion Snow and Tyler Kweder from American Armada, may all have fulltime day jobs, but that didn’t mean this band was just another time-filler between albums and tours. White Wives began as a thoughtful, longtime collaboration between friends that took inspiration from the mid-60’s Dutch anarchist Provo movement.
The latest result is Happeners, their debut full length for Adeline Records, a brilliant mix of anarchist intellect and indie rock that borrows from just as much from pop music as punk rock.
Chris #2 and Harvey spoke recently about the band, the movement that inspired them as well as setting AMP straight about the side project label.
How did the idea for this band first come about?
Chris #2: For me there were several catalysts for this project. First was when Roger and I spoke about working on his record (The Grand Scheme of Things) and he sent me about 30 songs, and every single one of them had something that I believed to be special. I wanted to see what would happen if we wrote together, what he could add to music that I write. When I first started playing music I played guitar, I enjoy playing bass, but the first instrument I picked up and dedicated myself to playing was guitar. I wanted to tap back into that dedication. Wives is a facilitation of this.
Harvey: Chris had the idea of starting something together and called me one day out of the blue when I was living in Brooklyn. I had never really thought of doing a project like this. But the idea seemed so simple and obvious to me. We are both very focused and very busy elsewhere in our lives. So to me it kinda came out of left field. But I was very excited to rearrange my life to have the opportunity to make music with someone I'm so closed to and that respect so much. Chris is like a brother to me. I left Brooklyn a few days later.
How long have you guys known each other?
Chris #2: (Chris) Head and I obviously have been playing music together for 10 years. Roger we met when he went out on Anti-Flag's Mobilize for Peace tour selling merch for The Code (he had a note from his mom in case any authority figures asked why a 15-year-old kid was in a shitty van). Tyler (Kweder) I met a couple years ago, we actually played hockey together, after becoming fast friends I brought him into our rock and roll fold as well.
Harvey: Like Chris said our lives intersected at different times and music has kind of brought us together. Chris, Tyler, and I made The Grand Scheme Of Things together and first realized that we shared a very special musical connection. Chris Head is someone we love very much and we didn't wanna do it without him. There is nothing like making music you love with old friends.
Tell me about the Provo music and how it's connected to the band?
Chris #2: The Provo movement was a Dutch group of young, fashionable, thoughtful anarchists. There was a sense of confidence in their agenda that I think has been lacking. Not necessarily arrogance, but the belief that what they were doing was important. The major aspect about the Provo's that we wanted to adopt is their ability to blend their politics with life, love, humor. We stole that idea; we've incorporated it into our songs. We do not have a single "political" song, there are ideas discussed, but we take turns in the song, stray from only walking on one path. Just as we don't have a single "love" song. We add in ideas or statements that corroborate other agendas maybe even from previous songs. I think that has a lot to do with our collective writing process.
Harvey: Yeah. The idea of making the political more personal and the personal political through a collective community of the arts had a huge influence on us. We found similarities in our vision with that of the Provos. We wanted to use a movement we respect as a symbol for our project. We feel very connected to that metaphor. Kind of as a centerpiece for the record we made.
The music obviously doesn't sound like what you'd expect from Anti-Flag or your other bands. Was that a conscious decision?
Chris #2: On one hand no, because we've never said, "this sounds like Anti-Flag, or The Code, or Dandelion Snow, change it"... However, there is no point in starting this band unless we were going to create sounds we haven't created in our other work, and push ourselves to create things that we maybe can't create with our other projects.
Harvey: We definitely have worked hard to create something that is separate from the projects we are currently a part of (and previously). It has been really rewarding to hear people reacting to this band as just that: something new. It means the world that people can let themselves be free enough to listen with open ears. We have liberated ourselves with this project.
How did you find your sound? Did it just sort of evolve after playing together or did you go into the project with specific ideas of influences?
Chris #2: We had a pretty clear vision on what type of landscape we wanted to create. We definitely had specific influences in mind; the trouble was how varying they were. But I think that problem was what inevitably led to our sonic development. Honestly, we worked our asses off. We spent months writing, demoing, searching for new instruments, sounds, ideas. All of that ended with us creating Happeners in a studio in Nashville, TN.
Harvey: We all listen to such a wide range of music. I didn't really know what to expect. I think we all came into this with a really flexible mind set. In turn our sound evolved very organically in our rehearsal room. We’re grateful to have so much diversity within our project. And I hope it shows. Like any progressive endeavor of the arts we embrace our diversity.
So is this a one-off side project?
Chris #2: Absolutely not. We don't consider it a side-project at all. We've been working, writing, touring, since last May. It’s only a recent development that we've been publicly sharing this. Anti-Flag and Dandelion Snow are still very active, but it’s really been a 50/50 split of the work load between White Wives and our collective other endeavors.
Harvey: Exactly. As I mentioned, this is a project that is very liberating for all of us. We take a lot of pride in it and do not take our musical connection for granted by any means. I think we all envision White Wives becoming more of a focus in the future as we continue to build this project. We are already working really hard so you can definitely expect more from us in the coming months.
Any plans to tour with these songs?
Chris #2: Yes. We have a CD release run booked for June/July. We're sorting out August, which will be announced before this runs, and we have some exciting touring shaping up for this fall.
Harvey: That's The White Wives Plan. As of now.
You guys all have day jobs in other bands, was it awkward at all finding your roles in White Wives, handling song writing duties, etc?
Chris #2: Not at all, that's why we find ourselves in this predicament right now. At the end of the writing session it was like, "fuck, these songs are too good just to lay waste in this rehearsal room; we have to make a record". Then it was, "fuck, this record is too good to just burn CD's for our friends, we have to get this record out". Now we have the record coming out, tours booked, things are moving pretty fast, its humbling, exciting, it’s invigorating for me.
Harvey: Totally. We all respect each other so much this has been extremely easy for us, and more so extremely rewarding. We all work very easily together. We all feel very lucky to have found this.
What is the significance behind the band's name?
Chris #2: The Provos had a set agenda they called the White Plans. One of these said plans is the White Wives Plan, where they passed out literature on safe sex, distributed birth control, and in a time where sexual independence was most definitely taboo, they push for people to take their sexuality in their own hands.
Harvey: What's in a name?
What's next for the band?
Chris #2: Our record Happeners comes out June 28. The plan is to be on the road as much as possible. We're hopeful to see this released internationally, and find ourselves overseas playing these songs. This is a band that we all believe in so much. We plan on doing everything in our power to share our songs and ideas with every pair of ears who will listen.
Harvey: We will continue to play and continue to make music we love together every chance we get. Our goals are reasonable and we have our eyes set on the sun. Above all, we hope that people enjoy listening to our songs as much as we have enjoyed making them together. It means the world to us.
Those are all the questions I have. Do you want to add anything?
Chris #2: Thank you tremendously for this opportunity. For more information on White Wives, please visit www.WeAreWhiteWives.com.
Comments