Riley Hawk's Skate Punk/Horror Rock Band WARISH Returns with "Runnin' Scared" B/W "Their Disguise" 7-inch EP (RidingEasy Records)
WARISH are a self-proclaimed "Low-Budget Horror Rock" band hailing from Oceanside, California; yes, their guitarist/vocalist is Tony Hawk's son and fellow Pro "Street" Skater, Riley Hawk. Oddly enough, my first real-deal "concert"—aside from Dexys Midnight Runners & Sesame Street/Disney On Ice—was Activision O2 Presents: Tony Hawk's Boom Boom HuckJam held at the then-First Union Center (now-Wells Fargo Center) in Philly in November of 2002. Boldly billed as "THE ONLY ACTION SPORTS TOUR THAT MATTERS!" and featuring the biggest, gnarlist SKATE/MOTO-X/BMX stars of the day rippin' it up on a giant half-pipe constructed right atop where the Sixers & Flyers would typically play. I can vaguely remember, my family went with my best buddy, Ryan, and his family and little did we know, in addition to Action/X-treme Sports, we'd be treated to our first Punk/Hardcore X-perience: Punk Rock/Blues pioneers Social Distortion! So, it's pretty wild to think that Tony Hawk's son, Riley, now fronts his own Skate/Horror Punk & Noise band; in addition to The Birdman, Jr. WARISH, also, features the talents of bassist Alex Bassaj and drummer Nick "Bruce" McDonnell. Hawk & McDonnell have previously played together as part of Skate Doom/Psych Rock band PETYR and Bassaj moonlights as "ROCKN'ROLL TRASH VINYL DJ," DJ Lexicon Devil.
"Imagine if INCESTICIDE-era Nirvana were crossed with Static Age-era Misfits. You'd have sinister Low-Budget Horror Rock with a visceral, twisted weirdness and bludgeoning riffs. Some might call it nightmarish... we call it WARISH," proclaims WARISH's Bandcamp page. Formed in early 2008, WARISH's harsh-edged, skate-friendly output has previously been likened to Motörhead, who are, admittedly, one of Riley Hawk's favorite bands, as well as 90's Alternative/Noise Rock pioneers Butthole Surfers. "We wanted to do simpler riffs and a fun live show. A little more Punk, a little bit of Grunge... a little evil-ish," Hawk recently explained to REVOLVER Magazine within a WARISH profile/premiere. "Runnin' Scared" / "Their Disguise" were both debuted within the aforementioned REVOLVER feature yesterday and as of today, Friday, May 31st, are now currently available in both digital and 7-inch single formats from Hermosa Beach, California-based RidingEasy Records. RidingEasy is, actually, run and operated by Daniel Hall AKA DJ Daniel Haul, whom, from what I understand, is an extremely talented DJ and party-starter unto his own right and, also, just so happens to be a long-time friend of The Witzard's frequent collaborator, Dan Ubick of Connie Price & The Keystones, The Lions, and most recently, The Mad Geezers. WARISH are currently gearing up to embark on Acid King's 21-date BUSSE WOODS 20TH ANNIVERSARY US TOUR with special guests Wizard Rifle & Witch Mountain this September-early October.