Cold World – Nick Woj, Drums

Have you heard Cold World yet? Fans of straight-up hardcore (not metalcore) definitely have to check for this band. Their sonic foundation is built on the blueprint old-school NYHC groups like Breakdown, Killing Time, and Outburst first laid down twenty years ago. But on their recently released Dedicated to Babies Who Came Feet First album, Cold World fuse the groove elements that Life of Agony explored on their debut record as well as throw in some of the hardest lyrics this side of Nas. SMN News spoke with drummer and lyricist Nick Woj about the band, his love of rap music, and the financial struggle of being in a touring hardcore band.

First off, are you named after the GZA song?

Yeah. It sums up the band perfectly plus it’s a hip-hop reference, easy to say and a bleak outlook.

There are lots of obvious hip-hop leanings in the band’s imagery and lyrics. Do you think you’ve been more moved by the lyrics in rap songs than say, hardcore or punk? I find that certain rappers (Cormega, Gang Starr) have a very direct and relatable way of expressing themselves and the shit they’re surrounded by.

You can say a lot more in a line of a hip-hop verse than a hardcore one, so I guess so. Hip-hop is a little more versatile too. For instance, take a rapper like Scaramanga or Raekwon. They may not be saying much in the verse itself but the way they put words together can strike vivid imagery in your head. So there’s a lot more ways to grab you in hip-hop lyrics than hardcore. Don’t get me wrong though, a lot of hardcore frontmen certainly grab me.

Did you find that kids didn’t understand the way you guys, for a lack of a better word, “branded” Cold World early on? I could see how using EPMD’s logo on one of your shirts can throw some people off.

At first I was shocked because I thought most hardcore kids were into hip-hop because that’s how it was in Wilkes-Barre and Philly with me and my friends. So I thought it was kind of weird when people were so alienated by it but I didn’t care. There are certain people whose taste I respect and those are the people whose acceptance I care about. Our core group of friends were down with it and psyched on what we were doing so I just kept pushing it. People who didn’t get it just didn’t and that was that. Once I saw bands biting us so hard I realized we were sort of a “brand” but whatever.

Cold World is unlike most other bands in the sense that you, the drummer, write all of the lyrics as opposed to the lead singer. Why doesn’t Dan handle this aspect of the songwriting? When you started the band, was this always the way you guys planned it?

We didn’t really decide that’s how it was going to be but I had so many ideas that I just went with it. I suppose I’m more expressive so I can put ideas into lyrics more easily. Alex actually told me he’s been working on some lyrics so I’m excited to see what he’s come up with.

Your lyrics on the title track absolutely jump off the page. You lay out some ghastly images. But towards the end of the song, there seems to be a sense of clarity coming through. Can you talk about what was going on in your head when you put this one together?

I was inspired to write those lyrics by seeing all these young kids covering themselves in tattoos (”tat-fuckin-too’s”) and acting hard when there’s nothing behind it. There are some things that I went through that someone with that mindset would use as an excuse for being that way but that’s just not what I want to be. So in the first verse I touch on some of the personal things then in the second, I apply it to these types. “You pose hard, show your scars, I never once questioned who you are, but that whole routine is so tired to me”. It’s a routine, and it’s not very clever but kids fall for it all the time. I wanted to show that you can express hard things you’ve been through without getting your eyelids tattooed and joining a gang. Not that I’m speaking out against tattoos or gangs, just kids going through that routine to gain their image when there’s nothing behind it.

“Roaches and Rats” really seems to be talking about someone specifically in your life who has really lost themselves to drugs. There’s also a lot of anger behind it. Do you have people in your life right now losing the battle with the needle?

I’m actually talking about seeing my friend change after he lost his father to drug addiction. I went through a lot of the same thing with my dad but I put that behind me and I don’t really fuck with him anymore, but I saw him kind of carry the weight on his back after that and I really felt for him.

While the new album has a sense of urgency to it, there are definite nods to the past musically speaking. I hear some Keith Caputo (Life of Agony) flavored vocal things going on in parts and the guitar sound is thicker than the metalized tone a lot of your peers are going with. Is this why you guys chose to work with Billy Graziadei of Biohazard? It seems like he would really know how to capture that essence since he was part of the scene back then.

Yeah, we wanted someone who understood the mechanics of that sound and that’s about as close to the source as you can get. I’m happy with how this record sounds but now I’m ready to work with someone who sees what we can do and takes it a step further.

I read in another interview that you had to bow out on a tour and have a fill-in drummer replace you because you had to stay home and work your day job. It just seems like with the way things are going in this country, it’s getting increasingly tougher to go out and make a living playing music; let alone hardcore. Where are you on a personal level with this right now? Can you see yourself touring 10 months straight and coming home to find a regular job in between?

Man, that’s a struggle I deal with every day in my head. When I took this job I felt like I had to for some reason and now I have no time for the thing I love the most in life (music), so I resent it because in a way it took that away from me. We’ll see what happens. We just got offered some crazy stuff for next year. Alex and I talk about it all the time, but I really want someone with some power to see our potential and push us. I’m sick of seeing all of these cornballs making money and getting famous off of things that our scene created. It’s time for people to realize that nothing is sacred anymore and to get out there and take back what’s ours. So, yes I can see us doing the rugged touring as long as we have the backing and push we need. We’re grown-ass men, but at the same time we’re not stuck in the same old thing. I feel more creative now then I’ve ever been.

What’s the story with your limited t-shirt runs? I heard people collect them like they would colored vinyl or rare LPs.

There’s not much of a story behind it. We don’t play shows too often like a lot of other bands so we just print up enough shirts for whenever we have shows. I have a lot of ideas for designs so I just like to keep them going. People definitely collect them but that’s nothing new. Collecting band shirts has always been a phenomenon in hardcore.

Let’s talk rap for a second. What was your introduction to it?

MTV! I remember seeing Beastie Boys, Fat Boys, Run DMC and LL Cool J videos and just being mesmerized. There used to be so may Rap compilation tapes back in the day and I had them all. They were usually around 5 bucks so it was easy for me to have my Mom or Grandmother get them for me. There was Rapmasters, Kool Rap, Fresh Rap, Hard Rap, so many!

I know you did some breakbeat and loop stuff on the new album. Are you producing any artists?

I do production for a group with two friends from Wilkes-Barre called Type Ill, I’m doing beats for a group with our guitar player Haroun called All Thoro and I just gave some beats to a group out of Richmond VA called Frontside. My ultimate goal is to have somebody I love on one of my beats.

Who are your some of your favorite rap lyricists? I have always found that the New York MC’s, and the rest of the North Eastern scene seems to have a sharper lyrical style where the West Coast guys are more about a getting into a groove and certain vibe and not so much the wordplay in a song.

I like guys who do a little of both. Sadat X, Grand Puba, Raekwon, Scaramanga, Q Tip, Lord Finesse, A.G., Diamond D, early Mos Def, Rakim, Kool G. Rap, etc. All my favorites are from NY but I like stuff from all over. Detroit has a great scene going on right now. Black Milk, Guilty Simpson and Elzhi are really killing it. It sucks that Jay Dee died but it seemed like it really lit a fire under that crew’s ass to rep for him and push that sound. I like some West coast guys like Rass Kass, old Souls of Mischief stuff and Bishop Lamont is cool. There are even Southern guys I check for like Z-Ro and Trae. All the old Rap-A-Lot stuff is great. I’m really mostly into the 90’s underground NY shit though. All those early Rawkus releases, every Godfather Don related, all the Fondle Em stuff. I’m a rap nerd, man. That takes up like 80% of my brain.

What does your family think about you playing in a hardcore band?

Not much. I’m not really close with my family, but I remember telling some of them that I was going to Europe and stuff and they said it was great but they didn’t seem that all impressed. They would be more impressed by me working in a factory and having a knocked-up blonde wife. Hardcore is so weird because barely anyone outside of it can understand it the way that we can. Even all of these screamo and pop punk bands could never fully understand it.

What are the biggest misconceptions people have about you and Cold World?

Great question. People think a lot of different things. I know a lot of people come up to Dan and try talking to him about sneakers and he has no clue what they’re talking about. People think we’re huge street wear guys but we’re not really into that shit at all. Some of the more established brands are cool sometimes but I pretty much just like Polo and Nike. I also think a lot of kids who didn’t know any better thought that we were perpetrators. They didn’t think we were real hardcore kids but in reality we’re deeper into it than they’ll ever be.

(+101 rating, 21 votes)

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