WAXAPPLES
WAXAPPLES are: Marcus Irvin, Jamie Sims Coakley, Brian Coakley, & James Grissom
WAXAPPLES and Nadine Records proudly announce the release of Glitter & Grime, their third full-length album together, professionally recorded, mixed and mastered and available digitally and with a traditional CD/DVD combo in the Spring of 2008.
Formed in 1999 by Brian Coakley (The Cadillac Tramps and former Maverick Records artist Rule 62) and his wife Jamie Sims Coakley, WAXAPPLES have managed to not only stay together, but to consistently release quality Indie records in a tumultuous and volatile music market.
After starting their own label (Nadine Records) in 1993, WAXAPPLES proceeded to write, record and release, in true DIY style, WAXAPPLES/WAXAPPLES. This album went on to earn them steady rotation on Los Angeles Indie 103.1 and several on air appearances with Dicky Barrett on The Mighty Mighty Morning show. WAXAPPLES/WAXAPPLES, in conjunction with a blistering live set, also earned them coveted opening slots in Southern California with most notably, Social Distortion, The Violent Femmes, and L.A. punk royalty X.
Two years later, in August of 2006, WAXAPPLES and Nadine Records released their second DIY record entitled WAXAPPLES/HOUSE OF WAX. With that release, the fan base continued to grow and they were asked back, not once, but several times by the aforementioned bands and became a favorite act of the House of Blues, Anaheim. They also hit, ahead of their time, on the cutting edge of viral marketing by producing, in conjunction with United Front, five high quality on-line viral spots, which have received over 25,000 views on YouTube alone. Thus establishing them as true innovators in the Southern California Indie/DIY scene.
The year 2008 finds WAXAPPLES/Nadine Records again setting the standard for longevity and innovation, as well as maintaining a commitment to quality music, with their third full-length release, Glitter & Grime.
In keeping with the changing marketplace, WAXAPPLES and Nadine Records, in association with United Front (mycadillacstory.com), undertook an ambitious CD/DVD release as a way to offer the music lover added content. The DVD, Produced & Directed by Michael Abbott, features the documentary So Close So Far which follows Jamie, Brian, Marcus & James through the ups and downs of writing and recording a DIY record. Unlike other “making of” docs, So Close So Far, uniquely explores the challenge of maintaining a hold on and a committed pursuit of your dreams, in the midst of being married, raising a child and keeping the bills paid.
Musically, Glitter & Grime is about great songs with great chorus’. “We really focused on writing and on making sure that we LOVED every song.” says Jamie about their new release. “Glitter & Grime has an overall roots rock/punk vibe with experiments in sugar pop and even bits of bluegrass. However, it maintains its cohesiveness with the uniqueness of Brian and Is lead vocals, Brian’s nasty guitar riffs/leads, and a love affair with classic pop song structures. I think Glitter & Grime really offers listeners a lot more room to breath and for sure a higher quality recording. It’s still rocks, it’s still fun, it’s still WAXAPPLES. It just has more variety. Like, we decided to cover two songs. Jackson, as made famous by Johnny Cash, and Tush by ZZ Top. We wanted to stretch our wings and really push ourselves like never before.”
And if that wasn’t enough, WAXAPPLES and Nadine Records went outside the box again with Glitter & Grime and started a special “Honorary Executive Production” (HEP) membership drive, utilizing their fan base to help fund the making and release of the album. They were able to raise, in advance of the release, 70% of production costs. This membership program served to both keep the music alive and also to keep the fans interested and motivated and actually draw them into, give them a unique “ownership” opportunity while the band made the record.
Production on Glitter & Grime included recording in a vintage dance studio in Hollywood, hiring veteran producer/mixer Chris Fuhrman (Brian Eno, Sparklehorse, Daniel Lanois), and Grammy award winning mastering engineer Gavin Lurssen, (December 2007, Cover-Mix Magazine) to help them achieve an even more complete and polished sound.
“We were at our limits with recording in our home studio, with me doing all the engineering and mixing. It was making us crazy, and we realized with House of Wax, that we had to go somewhere else, if we were gonna beat the sounds we got on that record. And we felt, we really needed and wanted to beat those sounds.” says Brian. “Thankfully, it worked out and we really and truly love this record.”