Sometimes, for reasons good or bad, things don’t go according to plan. The latter was the case for Cherry Soda, the collaborative album between Wavves frontman Nathan Williams and Say Anything’s Max Bemis, after Bemis was accused by multiple underage fans of sexual misconduct. Understandably, the project was shelved in light of the allegations, but has now emerged in slightly different, reworked form after Williams returned to the studio to complete the project as a solo Wavves record.
After initially intending to speak with both Williams and Bemis about the project, for obvious reasons, that didn’t happen. After the reworked version was announced, however, we shot five questions over to Williams, who answered them both very quickly and concisely.
Given the circumstances surrounding the original intended version of this record, how does it feel to have made this version?
It’s for sure a mix of emotion, but I’m glad people seem to like it.
Did revisiting and reworking these songs help you learn anything new about them that you weren’t aware of when they were first written?
Not particularly. I only had to rewrite one part in one song and then I just wrote four new ones. I guess I learned I can execute the process of making a song from start to finish very quickly. I don’t know if that’s a good or bad thing, but it’s a thing.
Wavves have been around for almost two decades, yet you still sound full of energy and inspiration. How hard is it to keep your enthusiasm up as you get older?
It’s not that hard. I like art. I like making art. So I wake up each day and I make art.
You’ve said you got tired of writing about yourself, which is why “Pinesol” was inspired by a number of different true crime stories. How liberating did you find that process of writing outside of your own experiences and emotions?
I wouldn’t say it was liberating. It’s just a change of pace because some days I don’t have anything to say.
For a while, Wavves were the figureheads of the indie-punk explosion. Do you recognize the you from back then in these songs at all, or do you feel like a totally different person?
I’m not a totally different person, but you also don’t want to be the same person at 22 and at 40. If you don’t have any personal growth in your life, then what’s the point? I try to stay true to the person I’ve always been, and I also try to be open-minded and learn new things.
