Page 15 - Classic Rock (January 2020)

“Everything we write is

based on the live shows. It’s
Wolf Jaw how we come across best.”

A change of name led to a heavier sound, out. Hear Me was one of the first songs we wrote, and it was that fast pace,
heavier riffs and vocals that dictated the direction of what we were going
and their new album shows that it’s paid off. to do next.”

Leighton and Tonks have been playing in bands together since they were
Change can feel uncomfortable, but it often signifies growth. After 15. Despite attending rival schools in their home town of Cannock, they
years of graft, last year Cannock trio Bad Flowers decided to change their hung around the same skate park, listening to Black Sabbath and Thin
name to Wolf Jaw. “It was absolutely horrible. It wasn’t a decision we took Lizzy. Since then they’ve spent decades honing their craft and transforming
lightly at all,” remembers vocalist/guitarist Tom Leighton. “We worked themselves into a monstrous live act. “Everything we write is based on the
really hard to get where we’d got to with Bad Flowers. “I don’t want live shows,” says Leighton. “It’s how we come across best. All the
to mention any names, [but] there were also a few bands knocking FOR FANS OF... passion comes out and everything gets left on the stage.”
about with a similar name. It was stuffing certain opportunities At this year’s Download Festival, the band played three sets
for us and causing a bit of confusion.” across the weekend, culminating in an early-morning slot on
As Bad Flowers, the Cannock trio (completed by bassist Dale the Dogtooth Stage, where they were tasked with winning over
Tonks and drummer Karl Selickis) had played Download Festival a weary Sunday crowd.
twice, bagged support slots with Crobot and Tyler Bryant And “It was literally the best set we’ve ever done,” enthuses Leighton.
The Shakedown, and earned themselves a loyal fan base. Wiping “The tent was absolutely jam-packed, and the atmosphere we were
the slate clean and effectively starting again from scratch was “Queens Of The Stone getting back from the crowd was just incredible.”
a daunting prospect, but the rebranding was a smart move. Under Age’s Lullabies To Now their new album, The Heart Won’t Listen, their first as Wolf
Paralyze has changed
the Wolf Jaw guise, the band’s blues-rock racket feels snappier the way I write music, Jaw, is set to boot them into a brand-new era.
and heftier, keeping the melody and the big choruses firmly in the especially Everybody “We wrote everything in two months,” says Leighton. “It just
forefront while exploring the fuzzier, sharper edges of bands like Knows That You’re kept coming out, riff after riff, then different types of choruses.
Insane. Its slow and
All Them Witches and early Queens Of The Stone Age. bluesy to start, then it I think the change in name gave us a kick-start. We felt free to do
“We’d come to the end of the cycle with the first record, and gets fast and furious. what we wanted.” DL
wanted to change up the sound,” Leighton continues about the I love the tempo
shift in gear. “We started jamming and a lot of different riffs came changes and the The Heart Won’t Listen is out now via Listenable Records.
heaviness of the guitar
tone. It showed me that
I can move tempos and
songs parts around.” CLASSICROCKMAGAZINE.COM 15