Wax was an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California. Wax emerged during the

pop punk Pop punk (or punk pop) is a rock music genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop. It is defined for its emphasis on classic pop songcraft, as well as adolescent and anti-suburbia themes, and is distinguished from other pu ...

resurgence of the early 1990s, and includes

Joe Sib Joe Sib, former frontman for the punk rock band Wax, as well as punk rock supergroup 22 Jacks, is the co-founder (along with Bill Armstrong) of SideOneDummy Records. Aside from working at the label, Sib is also active as a stand-up comic. He re ...

, Tom "Soda" Gardocki,

Dave Georgeff Dave Georgeff (born February 28, 1968, in Naperville, Illinois) is an American musician. Born in Naperville, Illinois, and raised in nearby Downers Grove, Georgeff is a graduate of the Musicians Institute in Los Angeles, California. Georgeff is a ...

, and

Loomis Fall Loomis Fall is an American songwriter, multi-instrumentalist musician, actor and stunt performer who has performed with several rock and punk bands, most notably with Wax, an early-1990s California pop-punk band, which was compared to the like ...

. The band is best known for their

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

buzz clip video "California", directed by

Spike Jonze Adam H. Spiegel (born October 22, 1969), known professionally as Spike Jonze, is an American filmmaker, actor, musician, and photographer. His work includes commercials, film, music videos, skateboard videos and television. Jonze began his ca ...

History

Wax formed in 1991 in Los Angeles, California. They released their first album, ''What Else Can We Do'', on

Caroline Records Caroline Records is a record label originally founded in 1973. Initially founded in the United Kingdom to showcase British progressive rock groups, the label ceased releasing titles in 1976, and then re-emerged in the United States in 1986. ...

in 1992, with a surf-inflected punk rock style, comparable to the

Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first true punk rock group. Despite achieving a limited commercial appeal in the United ...

and

Pixies A pixie (also pisky, pixy, pixi, pizkie, and piskie in Cornwall and Devon, and pigsie or puggsy in the New Forest) is a mythical creature of British folklore. Pixies are considered to be particularly concentrated in the high moorland areas aro ...

. According to the

liner notes Liner notes (also sleeve notes or album notes) are the writings found on the sleeves of LP record albums and in booklets that come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for cassettes. Origin Liner notes are desce ...

, "Hold On" was the first song that the band ever wrote together. The album was produced by

Daniel Rey Daniel Rey (born Daniel Rabinowitz) is an American musician, record producer and songwriter from New York City, best known for his work with the punk rock band Ramones. As a teenager Rey played in punk band Shrapnel, which also featured Dave Wynd ...

at Convent Studios. Wax began a lasting relationship with

, who directed the

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

for "Hush", filmed in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, where the majority of the band members originated prior to forming. In 1995, the band issued its major label debut, ''

13 Unlucky Numbers ''13 Unlucky Numbers'' is the second album by Wax, and their major label debut. The album spawned the singles "California" and "Who is Next", both with music videos directed by Spike Jonze, who is also credited for the album's photography. "Calif ...

'', on

Interscope Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture with Atlantic Records of Warner Musi ...

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

, as well as a limited color

vinyl Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl m ...

version on the

independent label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

Shattered Records, that also included a numbered

gatefold A gatefold cover or gatefold LP is a form of packaging for LP records that became popular in the mid-1960s. A gatefold cover, when folded, is the same size as a standard LP cover (i.e., a 12½ inch, or 32.7 centimetre square). The larger gatefo ...

sleeve and bonus track.

Paul Q. Kolderie Paul Q. Kolderie is an American record producer, engineer, and mixer. He has worked with Pixies, Radiohead, Orangutang, Hole, Dinosaur Jr., Juliana Hatfield, Wax, Warren Zevon, Uncle Tupelo, Throwing Muses, Morphine, the Mighty Mighty Bosstone ...

and

Sean Slade Sean Slade (born 14 November 1957) is an American record producer, engineer, and mixer. On many of his productions he worked in partnership with Paul Q. Kolderie. Career Slade was born in Lansing, Michigan, United States. He graduated from Y ...

acted as the production team for the sessions, recorded in the summer of 1993 at

Fort Apache Studios Fort Apache Studios is a New England recording studio focusing on alternative rock sessions produced there since 1986. History The studio was initially built by a collective begun in 1985 by musician/producer Joe Harvard and members of a band ...

. Spike Jonze was credited for the album's photography, and also directed two more music videos for the band. ''13 Unlucky Numbers'' included the single "California", whose music video was later called "infamous" by ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' and has been included on

Artforum ''Artforum'' is an international monthly magazine specializing in contemporary art. The magazine is distinguished from other magazines by its unique 10½ x 10½ inch square format, with each cover often devoted to the work of an artist. Notabl ...

's website. The video depicted a man on fire running in slow motion, and was quickly banned from daytime airplay on MTV. It was included on a retrospective DVD of the director, Spike Jonze, where a still from the video was also shown on the cover of the collection. The song was a moderate hit on American rock radio, reaching No. 28 on the

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Modern Rock charts in 1995.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

The album also included "Who Is Next", a song licensed to

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...

for a commercial which featured

Pete Sampras Petros "Pete" Sampras ( el, Πέτρος Σάμπρας; born August 12, 1971) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. His professional career began in 1988 and ended at the 2002 US Open, which he won, defeating longtime rival Andre ...

and

Andre Agassi Andre Kirk Agassi ( ; born April 29, 1970) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. He is an eight-time major champion and an Olympic gold medalist, as well as a runner-up in seven other majors. Agassi is the second of five men to ach ...

. The music video for the song featured

Tim Armstrong Timothy Ross Armstrong (born November 25, 1965) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and producer. Known for his distinctive voice, he is the singer/guitarist for the punk rock band Rancid and hip hop/punk rock supergroup Transplants. ...

and

Lars Frederiksen Lars Erik Frederiksen (born Lars Erik Dapello, August 30, 1971) is an American musician and record producer best known as a guitarist and vocalist for the punk rock band Rancid, as well as the frontman of Lars Frederiksen and the Bastards and ...

of the band Rancid. On April 2, 1995, the band appeared on MTV's ''

120 Minutes ''120 Minutes'' is a television program in the United States dedicated to the alternative music genre, that originally aired on MTV from 1986 to 2000, and then aired on MTV's associate channel MTV2 from 2001 to 2003. After its cancellation, MTV ...

'' to promote the release and perform live in the studio. Wax was featured in several major motion pictures in the mid-1990s. Their song "Mallrats" appeared on the soundtrack of the 1995

Kevin Smith Kevin Patrick Smith (born August 2, 1970) is an American filmmaker, actor, comedian, comic book writer, author, YouTuber, and podcaster. He came to prominence with the low-budget comedy buddy film ''Clerks'' (1994), which he wrote, directed, co ...

film ''

Mallrats ''Mallrats'' is a 1995 American buddy comedy film written and directed by Kevin Smith and starring Jason Lee, Jeremy London, Shannen Doherty, Claire Forlani, Ben Affleck, Jason Mewes, Joey Lauren Adams, Michael Rooker, and Smith as Silent Bob. ...

''. In the movie itself, it is heard over the closing credits, just after "Susanne" by

Weezer Weezer is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1992. Since 2001, the band has consisted of Rivers Cuomo (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Patrick Wilson (drums, backing vocals), Scott Shriner (bass guitar, keyboards, backing v ...

. The band briefly appeared in the 1996 film ''

Bio-Dome ''Bio-Dome'' is a 1996 American stoner comedy film directed by Jason Bloom. It was produced by Motion Picture Corporation of America on a budget of $8.5 million and was distributed theatrically by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The plot of the film revo ...

'', starring

Pauly Shore Paul Montgomery Shore (born February 1, 1968) is an American actor, comedian and filmmaker best known for his roles in 1990s comedy films. Shore began as a stand-up comedian at the age of 17, before becoming an MTV VJ in 1989. This led to a sta ...

and

Stephen Baldwin Stephen Andrew Baldwin (born May 12, 1966) is an American actor, producer and director. He has appeared in the films ''Born on the Fourth of July'' (1989), ''Posse'' (1993), ''8 Seconds'' (1994), ''Threesome'' (1994), ''The Usual Suspects'' (19 ...

, where they performed "He's a Whore", "Your Intelligence" and the

Bobby Freeman Robert Thomas Freeman (June 13, 1940 – January 23, 2017)"Bobby Freeman"
Ace Records.co.uk. Retrieve ...

song "

Do You Wanna Dance? "Do You Want to Dance" is a song written by American singer Bobby Freeman and recorded by him in 1958. It reached number No. 5 on the United States ''Billboard'' Top 100 Sides pop chart and No. 2 on the ''Billboard'' R&B chart. Cliff Richard ...

", during the party scene. The latter two songs appeared on the film's soundtrack. The band also contributed a cover of " Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy" to the cartoons' greatest hits album '' Saturday Morning'', a song originally from ''

The Ren & Stimpy Show ''The Ren & Stimpy Show'' (also known as ''Ren & Stimpy'') is an American animated television series created by Canadian animator John Kricfalusi. Originally produced by Spümcø for Nickelodeon, the series aired from August 11, 1991, to Decemb ...

''. After going their separate ways in 1995, Sib started the band 22 Jacks with Steve Soto of the

Adolescents Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the te ...

and

Agent Orange Agent Orange is a chemical herbicide and defoliant, one of the "tactical use" Rainbow Herbicides. It was used by the U.S. military as part of its herbicidal warfare program, Operation Ranch Hand, during the Vietnam War from 1961 to 1971. It ...

, while continuing to develop his record label

SideOneDummy SideOneDummy Records is an independent record label based in Los Angeles. It was founded in 1995 by Bill Armstrong and Joe Sib. The label began as a way for them to release music for their friends' bands. Thereafter SideOneDummy launched the car ...

. Gardocki went on to front Soda & His Million Piece Band, a

Pogues The Pogues were an English or Anglo-Irish Celtic punk band fronted by Shane MacGowan and others, founded in Kings Cross, London in 1982, as "Pogue Mahone" – the anglicisation of the Irish Gaelic ''póg mo thóin'', meaning "kiss my arse". T ...

-esque rock band who specialized in punk-inflected Americana and blues, and later played with Rose's Pawn Shop. Georgeff started the Los Angeles indie rock combo Sign of the Fox. Loomis became a recurring cast member and writer on '' Jackass'', appeared on ''

Wildboyz ''Wildboyz'' is an American television series. It is a spin-off and follow-up to '' Jackass''. ''Wildboyz'' debuted in 2003 on MTV, and moved to MTV2 in its third season. The show starred Steve-O and Chris Pontius, who perform stunts and acts ...

'', and was present in '' Jackass: The Movie'', ''

Jackass Number Two ''Jackass Number Two'' is a 2006 American reality slapstick comedy film directed by Jeff Tremaine. It is the sequel to '' Jackass: The Movie'' (2002), both based upon the MTV series '' Jackass''. Like its predecessor and the original television ...

'', ''

Jackass 2.5 ''Jackass Number Two'' is a 2006 American reality slapstick comedy film directed by Jeff Tremaine. It is the sequel to '' Jackass: The Movie'' (2002), both based upon the MTV series '' Jackass''. Like its predecessor and the original television ...

'', ''

Jackass 3D ''Jackass 3D'' (known as ''Jackass 3'' on home media) is a 2010 American 3D reality comedy film directed by Jeff Tremaine. It is the third installment in the ''Jackass'' film series, and the sequel to ''Jackass Number Two'' (2006). The film sta ...

'', and ''

Jackass 3.5 ''Jackass 3D'' (known as ''Jackass 3'' on home media) is a 2010 American 3D reality comedy film directed by Jeff Tremaine. It is the third installment in the ''Jackass'' film series, and the sequel to ''Jackass Number Two'' (2006). The film sta ...

'', and he will also appear in the upcoming ''

Jackass Forever ''Jackass Forever'' (stylized as ''jackass fore♥er'') is a 2022 American reality comedy film directed and produced by Jeff Tremaine, along with producers Spike Jonze and Johnny Knoxville, and was released by Paramount Pictures. It is the fo ...

''. He also released two albums as Loomis, ''Black Black'' and ''Cigarette'', as well as playing drums for

Chris Pontius Chris Pontius (born July 16, 1974) is an American stunt performer and television personality. He is best known as a cast member of the reality comedy show '' Jackass'' and co-host of its spinoff ''Wildboyz'' with fellow cast member Steve-O. ...

' band, Scream for Me.

Recent activity

In July 2009 Wax reunited, announcing the release of ''Hangin' On'', a

7" vinyl In music, a single is a type of Art release#Music, release, typically a song Sound recording, recording of fewer tracks than an LP record or an album. One can be released for record sales, sale to the public in a variety of formats. In most ca ...

record featuring four unreleased songs that were originally intended to appear on ''13 Unlucky Numbers''. The idea was inspired by

Record Store Day Record Store Day is an annual event inaugurated in 2007 and held on one Saturday (typically the third) every April and every Black Friday in November to "celebrate the culture of the independently owned record store". The day brings together fa ...

and saw release on SideOneDummy, with all proceeds donated to UCP Wheels for Humanity. Wax played their first show in fourteen years at

Riot Fest Riot Fest is an annual three-day punk rock music festival based in Chicago, Illinois, at Douglass Park. It is known for booking reunions, guest performances, and full album performances. Riot Fest remains one of the largest independently owned m ...

in Chicago, with

Naked Raygun Naked Raygun was one of the first, one of the longest running, and one of the most recognized Chicago punk bands. They are considered by many to be the most important band in the history of Chicago punk rock and credited with creating “the Chi ...

and Rights of the Accused, at The Metro on October 9, 2009, following a small warm-up show in Los Angeles at the Darkroom. Wax opened for long-time friends and contemporaries Weezer after being asked by the band to support them for their October 24, 2009 performance at the

Hollywood Palladium The Hollywood Palladium is a theater located at 6215 Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, California. It was built in a Streamline Moderne, Art Deco style and includes an dance floor including a mezzanine and a floor level with room for up to 4,000 ...

to promote the then-upcoming '' Raditude'' album.

Band members

– lead vocals *Tom "Soda" Gardocki – guitars, vocals *

– bass, vocals *

– drums, vocals

Discography

Studio albums

:*I The LP version was issued on Shattered Records.

Extended plays and singles

* "Who Is Next" (1994)

Side One ''Side One'' is the thirteenth solo album by Adrian Belew, originally released in 2005. The album features bassist Les Claypool (from Primus) and drummer Danny Carey (from Tool) on its first three tracks. The track "Beat Box Guitar" was nominate ...

* "It Ain't Funny" (1994) Side One * "Who Is Next" (1995) Interscope/Atlantic * "California" (1995) Interscope/Atlantic * "Hangin' On" (2009)

Side One Dummy SideOneDummy Records is an independent record label based in Los Angeles. It was founded in 1995 by Bill Armstrong and Joe Sib. The label began as a way for them to release music for their friends' bands. Thereafter SideOneDummy launched the car ...

Compilations and soundtracks

*''

'' (1995) MCA *'' Saturday Morning: Cartoons' Greatest Hits'' (1995) MCA *''

'' (1996)

Priority Records Priority Records is an American distribution company and record label known for artists including N.W.A, Ice-T, Jay-Z, Snoop Dogg, Big L, Silkk the Shocker and Westside Connection. It also distributed hip hop record labels including Death Row R ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wax Caroline Records artists Interscope Records artists Musical groups established in 1991 Musical groups disestablished in 2009 Musical groups from Los Angeles Pop punk groups from California 1991 establishments in California 2009 disestablishments in California