Cover Art By Zack Beitel
Whaja Dew has always been a one of a kind band. I remember the first time I saw them at the Los Angeles DIY venue, The Smell with Espresso, The Gems, and Rose Dorn. They were so easy to make out due to their bright single-colored jumpsuits and ex-member Yali Bitan’s poofy hair. Whaja Dew plays hardcore punk songs with a tongue-in-cheek attitude. Take for example “Aunt Flo”, a track off their debut EP. It is a song that can open up a mosh pit from a mile away, but its lyrical content is about the female menstrual cycle. The only other band that I can think of that is witty enough to make punk rock period anthems is Tacocat with their song “Crimson Wave”.
After hearing that Whaja Dew released a single, I stopped what I was doing immediately and went onto Bandcamp. Initially coming into this track, I was unfamiliar with what the word “hinterland” even meant. After a quick google search, I understood that it meant an area that is beyond what is visible. This helped me decipher the true meaning of the lyrics: the author finds themselves stuck in a strange world that is out of their control. Despite whatever the author does, the hinterland won’t change for them.
Although the song barely exceeds a minute and a half, it features a variety of tempos intertwined in between the verse, chorus, and breakdowns. Whaja Dew truly shows their shredding abilities mid-song when guitarist and lead singer Stephanie Loza throws a shriek over a doughty guitar solo. The noise becomes even more blaring as drummer Aiden Gilbert nearly annihilates his drum kit as the screams of hinterland resurface.
One of the things that makes this song stand out from previous Whaja Dew tracks is its raw and gritty feel. This can be attributed to the fact that it was not recorded in a studio but rather in Whaja Dew’s home away from home, The Smell. The mixing, mastering, and recording of Hinterland was done by Loza, a recent graduate from Los Angeles Recording School.
Even though Whaja Dew always holds their adorable happy-go-lucky persona, not everything has been cheeky in their world. Recent legal disputes led to the erasing of their debut EP from major streaming platforms. With the release of Hinterland, Whaja Dew proves that they are a band that still has something to offer to the world. They prove that they can bounce back with formidable tracks with or without a record label.
Stream Hinterland by Whaja Dew below:
Image Courtesy Of James A.D
