Wargasm stay true to their word, no matter the consequence. On "Do It So Good," the first single from the U.K. electro-punk duo's full-length debut, Venom, vocalist-bassist Milkie Way snarls out her and vocalist-guitarist Sam Matlock's sinister intent as they rise through the ranks of heavy music: "We came for blood."
Between the pair's attitude-heavy screams, in-song comparisons to fierce pop-culture figures like Madonna and The Terminator's Sarah Connor, and a musical bedrock of hard-blitzed house beats and nu-metal swagger, Wargasm make a pretty compelling case that they aren't to be fucked with.
"I don't like confrontation, but I feel a bit fight-y these days," Way tells Revolver, noting that "Do It So Good" is a warning shot to shit-talkers and copycats. "People say things that make me feel a lot of ways in my brain; someday it might be acted out on. We'll see."
The threat of danger is nevertheless part of Wargasm's undeniable appeal, with the duo's IDGAF sound and vision attracting a whole bunch of attention at the moment. There's lots of love coming from nu-metal icons including Jonathan Davis, Corey Taylor and Fred Durst (the latter two have both handpicked Wargasm to open their tours).
There's also the new generation Matlock describes as the "fuck-loads of incredibly dressed, immaculate people jumping over each other" at Wargasm's riot-ready live shows.
"I wear kneepads for a reason," Way says, laughing. "I've been onstage with bleeding knees, or a bloody face. I often get a mic to the face, self-inflicted. Sometimes I'll come back with a fuckin' broken rib." Fittingly, Venom is the pair's most bruising statement yet.
Wargasm formed in 2018. Way was a model and photographer that had moved to London from Northern Ireland. Matlock was in the buzzy band Dead!, and the pair met after Way shot one of their sets.
After Dead! broke up, Matlock slid into Way's DMs and invited her to his flat to hear some songs he'd been writing. She told Matlock that his demos were "shit," but as they bonded over art and music they "clicked very quickly," and Wargasm was born.
The two have been inseparable since. "We live together and we go on tour," says Way. "So, we're a bit of an organism at this point."
Starting with 2019's "Post Modern Rhapsody" single, and onto last year's acclaimed debut EP EXPLICIT: The MiXXXtape, the duo has needled into a freakish fusion of dayglow breakbeats and decadently detuned grooves.
Venom takes things to new extremes, with Way and Matlock's latest hybrid theory juxtaposing stronger melodic hooks with even more acid-corroded metal mania. Further ratcheting up the insanity, Limp Bizkit's Fred Durst even drops a guest verse on Venom's neck-breaking party anthem, "Bang Ya Head."
On Venom standout "Death Rattle" — which is driven by a sample of Björk's industrially bombastic "Army of Me" and amped-up for the 2020s with vicious back-end breakdowns — Wargasm explore a hypothetical scenario about being at a party during a doomsday event and hoping your nearest "fuck-buddy" is a good fit. ("Choose wisely!" says Way.)
Having already survived the pandemic together, Wargasm's duo are clearly locked into a good thing. And while they're often whipping up the pits, they aren't afraid to enjoy life's simple pleasures. With that in mind, after a quick stop at the pub, Way and Matlock invited Revolver back to their flat to show off some of their favorite things.
FAVORITE SOHO PUB
The Blue Posts
MILKIE WAY This isn't near where we live. It's in Soho … but I'll drink an Estrella there.
SAM MATLOCK It's at the bottom of Berwick Street, which used to be a famous market before it got mad gentrified. It's not our "local," but one of the things you get by being a Londoner is that going to the pub is important.
It might seem like a trivial thing, but taking that half-an-hour to sit and have a nice pint that slightly dulls one's senses is exceptional for creativity. It gives you a brief disconnect from life.
Pubs are a beautiful place to take respite with friends. Instead of just staring at the screen all day, you can just pop into the pub and chat about something completely un-music related.
FAVORITE APOCALYPSE-READY PHYSICAL MEDIA
DVDs
MATLOCK It's the tangible thing: There's something about taking it out of the sleeve, or having a little look at your DVD shelf like, "What should we watch tonight," instead of clicking on this thing where you can watch anything.
And when the internet goes down — when the bombs start dropping and the Wi-Fi's the first thing to go — what the fuck are you going to do? We're going to sit here and watch our movies and have a great time!
WAY I like horror. Sam likes sci-fi and action. We've also got a lot of concert DVDs, which was good during the lockdown. You couldn't go to gigs, so the next best thing was watching them on your TV. "Tonight we're going to watch Jeff Buckley, and then fucking Iron Maiden, back-to-back."
FAVORITE MUSIC REVOLUTIONARY
Wendy O. Williams
WAY Wendy O. Williams is my number one muse/icon/queen, music-wise. That Plasmatics record [Coup d'État] was a gift from Ian, our manager. Everything Wendy did was revolutionary. She was the blueprint. Running around onstage in this bikini and her Reeboks, she looked and sounded so fucking good — and really didn't give a fuck in the most visceral way.
FAVORITE HEAVY-METAL FOOTWEAR
Reeboks
MATLOCK When Iron Maiden got Bruce Dickinson and Adrian Smith back for [2000's] Brave New World, they still kept [guitarist] Janick Gers in the band. He wore those Reeboks; so when I was younger, I wore those.
No offense to Doc Martens, but I don't like them. They're not comfortable. The Reebok high-top is a beautiful shoe. They look good, mate! And they're a part of metal: Go Google Metallica or Megadeth with "sneakerheads." Nothing looks cooler than a trashed pair of white trainers.
FAVORITE JEWELRY DESIGNER
Anine Irdem
WAY This piece is made by my good friend Anine Irdem. I hit her up before the Heavy Music Awards, about two years ago, after I saw she had this bodice top made out of crosses that strategically covered the nipples. I wore the same top and a matching skirt for the EXPLICIT artwork.
I wear her cross on my neck every day. Northern Ireland's a pretty staunchly religious place, but I learned pretty early that I was non-religious. So, I guess it's partly subversion [to wear the cross].
Maybe the only good thing about religion is that the aesthetics are strong. Churches look fucking gorgeous! They sure know how to fucking brand.
FAVORITE NWOBHM OBSESSION
Iron Maiden
MATLOCK When I was 15 or 16, I saw Iron Maiden [on the 2006] A Matter of Life and Death album cycle, and it changed everything for me — these widdily harmonic guitars jumping into baroque-esque [melodies]. And as a nerd and a fan of all things sci-fi and fantasy, Eddie's the perfect mascot.
I got an art book of Derek Riggs, the guy who created Eddie. The first painting of Eddie [which became the cover of Iron Maiden's self-titled debut] was originally titled "Electric Matthew Says Hello," because he wanted to make a zombie that looked like he'd been plugged into some electricity.
I've got a little tatty on my leg [based on it]. It was at Bloodstock festival. Someone started slagging off Iron Maiden, so I was like, "Right, fuck you … I'm going to play a set and then get a fucking Iron Maiden tattoo. That'll teach you!"
FAVORITE POP-STAR SWAG
Prince Jacket
WAY I got that on eBay, which is my favorite place to shop. The [seller] ended up bringing the jacket over to the apartment. I was expecting it to be this old music head kind of guy, but down walk these two massive-smiling South London lesbians, arm-in-arm.
They told me how they went on a date to see Prince in Camden back in '96, before I was even born! They were like, "You better not sell it." And I said, "Don't you worry, if anyone wants it, they'll have to take it from my cold dead hands."
"My Name Is Prince" is one of my favorite songs. It's the inspiration for a lot of our stuff, because it has that sexy snare [and that] woman moaning. It's definitely something I rip off a lot.
The attitude that Prince had onstage — how he managed to be hypermasculine and hyperfeminine at the same time — that's an inspiration. He's an icon. I'm proud to wear the emblem on my back.
FAVORITE SAD SUPERHERO PAINTING
"Batman: Bit of a prick" by Lee Ellis
MATLOCK I got that in lockdown from one of our collaborators, [producer and ex-Prodigy drummer] Kieron Pepper. He knew that I was a fan. We were living in a big house in Northern Ireland, hiding out, and it just arrived.
I thought it was a threat at first, because I didn't know that anyone knew our address. The décor [at the house] wasn't what I would call inspiring for an electronic punk-rock band... If you want to feel creative, you should have a few things dotted around that make you feel something. So, I put this piece up.
It was great because there was a lot of despair in his eyes. It's a very relatable painting!
FAVORITE CATALYST FOR CHANGE
Hair Dye
MATLOCK I first dyed my hair when I was 14. It's one of those very white-girl statements, but it rings very true: You can't control much in this world, so it's nice to be able to control the color of your hair.
I think it's nice to look into the mirror and see someone different. You can dress different, but when you take your clothes off at the end of the day you look the same.
FAVORITE DAVE MUSTAINE-INSPIRED ACCESSORY
Bullet Belt
MATLOCK What made you get one?
WAY You were copying Dave Mustaine, and then I was copying you. I guess that's the answer. We live in a part of London called Camden, and there's this weird old punk shop on High Street. It doesn't have a sign outside, so I can't tell you the name, but it's the only shop with bondage pants and army jackets outside.
It's run by this Armenian guy; he loves a good barter. I ended up getting it for 100 quid, which is pretty good. Solid, real bullets! It's safe to say I've gotten my money's worth out of it. I wear it pretty much every day, and onstage. It really pulls together the whole stage look for me.
MATLOCK There's a uniform that comes with metal: You've got your blue jeans, your battle jacket, your band shirt — which you will be judged upon — your combat boots or high-tops, and you wear a fucking bullet belt.
Gatekeeping and elitism are bad, but sometimes it helps to preserve the culture. Sometimes it's good to obey these rules. Thou shalt wear a bullet belt!
