Freya Wilcox & The Howl

BROOKLYN, NY - Freak Out! Fest, a music festival celebrating queer, trans and gender-fluid identities in punk music, gathered nearly 20 bands for a weekend of punk and related musical stylings. From the opening acts to the closing notes, band members explicitly discussed their own struggles and triumphs with gender identity, and how it influenced their music.

All profits from the highly inclusive festival earmarked for donation to FIERCE, which supports leadership initiatives for LGBTQ youth of color in New York City.

Photos by Skyler Reid - Village Voice

Freya Wilcox & The Howl are a Brooklyn based band that teeter on the pinnacle between blues and punk. I say “pinnacle” there instead of “edge” because “edge” sounds careless and “pinnacle” is just more sophisticated and thoughtful in this instance. This band has seen some shit, and they’re not just gonna go around stepping on cracks, they’ve got one foot firmly planted on one slope, and the other planted on the opposite side.

Like acrobats on a pyramid. A gold pyramid that says “I’m Gonna Kick Your Ass” on the front of it in glittery paint. They’re up there firmly balanced, playing their songs, and strewn around at the bottom of the pyramid are a bunch of other bands who tried to scale the sides but failed because, aside from not being as good, they didn’t have the balls Freya Wilcox did to email someone like me and be like “I like you, maybe you’ll wanna write about my band.” Bravery and balance always wins. Hasn’t Game of Thrones taught you anything?

The band will be releasing their debut album together, Bareknuckle Love, on May 23rd, and this video for the track “Bury Me” is an exclusive from it.

Singer/guitarist Freya Wilcox describes her band’s sound as a “raspy, rocky scathey thing” so we were compelled to ask … “Can you describe the last time you were screaming mad?” Here’s what she said:

“The week before we left for tour I had a crazy few days; my grandfather in Australia died, work got crazy stressful, and I had to scramble to get a stamp in my passport that would allow me to go to Montreal to play Pouzza Fest, because some asshole stole my green card from the mail.

I went down to the immigration department on my lunch break where a super mean little woman told me there was no way I could get a last-minute appointment without a family emergency (in hindsight I should have lied but it didn’t occur to me), and that I could go to Canada but there was no getting back into the US for me. I was FURIOUS and totally snapped. I went outside and cried in front of City Hall for an hour or so, I’m pretty sure like 5 double-decker busses went by this little crying punk girl on the sidewalk…

When I went back the next day to try again the SAME woman was super nice to me and gave me an appointment asap. WTF right? I can only assume that I have a vibrator to thank for that stamp in my passport, but man am I stoked that I didn’t have to cancel our first festival date!!”

See? 100% warriors.

Catch Freya Wilcox & The Howl at their upcoming record release show on May 23 at Kings County Saloon, and buy their album when it comes out. Period. - Brokelyn

Frey Wilcox’s throaty vocals sound at home above a blistering punk beat on “Bury Me”. But the EP Bareknuckle Love is equal parts punk as it is blues. The Brooklyn trio brings the genres together in a raw flurry. - Independent Music News

As a queer artist who also identifies as a cisgender woman, I am always searching for artists like me. In a way, we all gravitate towards certain musicians or icons because they feel personal. You want to hear someone tell your story. The LGBTQ community, especially, is starved for female voices.

Most queer women know the big icons of Rock n Roll. Melissa Etheridge, Tegan and Sara, Joan Jett, Bikini Kill, etc…

But what about the girls making waves right now? The up and comers who are rebranding what queer music looks and sounds like?

Here is a list of ten queer musicians that rock my socks... - Punk Out

It’s almost the weekend (Thursday is pretty much the weekend these days, right?), and nothing will kick you into party mode more than the delightfully punk rock/blues jams of Brooklyn-based Freya Wilcox & The Howl. We’re excited to premiere their new EP, Bareknuckle Love, which will leave you feeling all kinds of happy and empowered—basically you’ll feel like a total rocker badass after just one listen.

The EP immediately grabs your attention in “Bury Me” with its rollicking drums, and you’ll stay interested once frontwoman Freya Wilcox’s raspy vocals and roaring guitar chords join in. It’s a high-energy, bonafide punk jam that’ll have you daydreaming about the days of rocking out and moshing in a grungy church basement (I can’t be the only one who did this, can I?). The upbeat punk energy is continued in “I Don’t Care” as Wilcox croons alongside her twanging guitar. The first half of the EP is pure punk greatness, with the band members heading out on a musical journey totally unique from what you might hear on your car radio these days.

By the midpoint of the EP with “Dirty Song,” the blues part of their identity takes over. Wilcox’s signature vocals explode alongside bluesy guitar, the track bursting at the seams with passion and emotion. Continuing with the blues trend is the more upbeat “Easier to Lie” where cymbals crash, Wilcox is practically shrieking, and the whole things feels a little bit country AND a little bit rock ‘n’ roll. In fact, that’s an almost perfect way to describe the band’s vibes in Bareknuckle Love overall. The EP closes out with the “Fight for You,” which is really the perfect way to end a chaotic blues and punk album.

If you’re as obsessed as we are, then you’re in luck because Freya Wilcox & The Howl is playing some shows throughout May. Check them out on their website and get ready to mosh along with this kickass group of gals. - ORSVP

The story of Freya Wilcox coming to America from Australia is, in a way, a modern day take on the classic immigrant's quest for a better life.

Instead of rolling into Ellis Island, she flew to JFK with a work visa pending. The punk-blues solo musician comes from a small, unnamed town outside of Brisbane and although the United States is relatively friendly to Aussies living and working here, Wilcox says she "literally had to trek through snow in Canada" in order to build a life for herself in Brooklyn.

Wilcox ended up here for the same reason why so many young, hungry musicians do: for love, so that she can have something to sing about. Starting out with just her throaty, yet delicate voice and an acoustic guitar, she's gone on to add two more members to her project, now calling it Freya Wilcox and the Howls. She hasn't given word yet as to whether or not an orchestra is in her future, but she's doing pretty well with her debut EP Dirt Music. BTR was able to speak with Wilcox in person as she was taking an extended lunch break from her cushy, non-rock and roll job that just so happens to let her live here.

Wilcox says she "ended up here by accident" after she "fell in love with an American... a very hot one too." The two met at the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras where Wilcox was accompanying a friend, while on line for the bathroom. Out of nowhere, she got "punched in the crotch" and naturally "that's when I knew it was love." She advises anyone who finds themselves in a similar scenario that "punching people definitely works."

The two tried long distance, Australia to New York, which is really the longest distance relationship one could be in, for awhile. Wilcox was planning to move to Melbourne but it took a push from her father to say, "Seriously, what have you got going on here? Why would you not move to New York?" And so her mind was made up.

Wilcox can trace her musical beginnings to the aforementioned small town outside of Brisbane, Queensland when she was two years old and "wouldn't stop singing in the car." Her mom would take her to a coffee shop right across from a guitar shop and Wilcox would beg her mom to take her to that shop, though it has since burned down. Her family moved to "the beach" where she had a guitar teacher who became a primary female influence on Wilcox musically and life-ly. The school where she would practice had all the students sufficiently learn guitar and Wilcox opted to learn blink-182 songs, which is interesting for an Australian girl because that's how most young punks learn music right here in the States.

After initially being introduced to blink-182 and Green Day, Wilcox says, "Then you move on to Nirvana and you have a metal stage, then eventually you come back around to indie and then you realize Bob Dylan's pretty cool. I think it's the same and I think that punk rock is probably effectively the same all over the world."

"It's a means to survive in a world where you just don't feel like anybody understands you but everybody inevitably kind of does understand you and you're just a wanker," she continues, in the most poetic and Australian way.

Along with punk rock being the main driving force in Wilcox's music, the blues is there in the mix as another blanket term. Wilcox had always fronted punk bands back in her home country and so she says that when she put out this EP, she had to "write a bunch of songs or rather change a bunch of songs that were rockin' punk songs into being blues songs that I could pull off by myself."

Listening to a young Australian woman with such a gruff and sweet voice, it's hard not to make comparisons to fellow Aussie Brody Dalle (of Distillers, Spinnerette, and now solo fame). It might be bad enough making that comparison here and now, but Wilcox doesn't shy away from juxtaposition.

"I started singing the way that I sing, loud and hard, and I was always getting comments about how Brody Dalle was somebody like, 'Oh, you sound just like her' and I was just like, 'Well, I'm not gonna go and listen to it, that's really upsetting so no.' When I eventually did, I was like, 'Hoooly shit, this is incredible but now I don't feel original at all.' I was working as a laborer for a time and I was spending 12 hours a day mowing lawns and the only way that I could manage to pump myself up to continue was listening to that. I literally listened to those records over and over and over again. I think that's the point where I was like, I could weave a hook into a song and that's not selling out," says Wilcox on her unknown muse.

Freya Wilcox was a solo musician only until recently where she linked up with fellow musicians Craigory Shay and Khalin Vallee at the venue they all frequent, The Ding Dong Lounge. Shay quite desperately told Wilcox that he'd "love to play with [her]." He said, "I'll do whatever you want" and 'whatever' ended up being a big, fat drum kit. Wilcox's attitude with a backing band, (mysteriously named 'The Howls') is more "you do whatever you want and this is how I play this song, tell me if you think it's fucked."

Since gang violence is on the decline in New York, it seems that everyone still needs something to be part of. So they form artist "collectives." What Wilcox and her merry gang of pranksters formed is called the Best Friends Artist Collective, comprised of "like 60 of us that are all in the same bands and in each other's business."

"They're a great load of guys and I've gotten a lot of support from the community in the scene that's expanding rapidly. The scene is definitely there. I didn't fully understand how these things developed before but now I can see it, it's awesome," says Wilcox of her new BFFs.

With a little help from her friends, a tired and hungry Freya Wilcox took a chance on work visas and cross-continental love affairs to find the nexus of the blues and punk here in the ol' US of A. Now she's getting by--fantastically, might we add--by digging out a little space in the vast social network of New York for an Aussie girl to call home.

Let Freya Wilcox be the soundtrack for your 24-hour plane ride by clicking here. - Break Thru Radio

After falling in love with an American who was visiting in Sydney, Aussie blues singer Freya Wilcox decided that it was time to leave Brisbane, Queensland and venture halfway around the world to New York City to pursue her heart as well as her dreams. It wasn’t long after arriving that she found a place on various small stages around the five boroughs, a far cry from the dirty stoops where she performed for roughneck Australian miners. It was on one of those stages at The Ding Dong Lounge in Manhattan that friends Craig Shay and CJ Dunaieff from Long Island first saw, and more importantly first heard, Freya. They instantly knew that she had a unique sound that lends itself to punk and approached her after the set. From that chance encounter, Freya Wilcox and the Howl was born.

Fate has a funny way of intervening just when it’s needed. Female fronted bands are on the uptick and most of them are in a similar vein. Not that it’s bad, but it’s always refreshing when something slightly askew comes along. The band’s debut EP, Bareknuckle Love, melds blues, country and punk all together in equal parts. It really is genius how they have kept the balance in line, so much so that the end product is something totally different and miles away from the genres it takes from. The album has the raw, unproduced sound that you don’t normally hear from traditional studio recordings. You can hear it in the drums throughout, but it’s most apparent in opening track “Bury Me”. The fact that it’s a three piece is perfect too. It leaves Freya’s surly, aggressive vocals nowhere to hide. Her sound has been likened to fellow Aussie Brody Dalle. I can hear it in spots, but overall it’s much softer. I wouldn’t say it’s delicate, but definitely not as savage as Dalle. More like a grittier Janis Joplin. It’s not just her voice that stands out either, she’s been playing guitar ever since her mom finally caved and bought her one after years of begging every time they drove past the local music store as a toddler. The guitar riffs have an unmistakable country twang that weaves effortlessly between the rock and blues. The distinct sound is showcased in “Easier To Lie” which sounds like it could’ve competed with Johnny Cash for the top of the country charts in the 1960’s.

The overall tone of the album is fast, raw and unpolished. The one exception is “Dirty Song” which is definitely the song with the most blues influence. Sullen, hollow and winding. Slowly building up to a crashing chorus. I think they probably describe themselves perfectly through what they list as their influences: “Filthy blues, vintage punk and fever dreams.” I don’t know that I can say it any better. It’s exactly what your brain is subconsciously categorizing it as in head from. It takes you a second for it to set in because you don’t have a point of reference, but eventually you wrap your head around it. That aspect is exactly what is going to take these guys farther than just the damp, dive bars in NYC and sure as hell farther than a dusty stoop in Queensland. - Dying Scene

My mom was a drummer in a 90s girl band, which played everywhere from my hometown of Baltimore to CBGB to Woodstock ‘94 (I was five; I stayed with my grandparents and got the chicken pox. It was almost exactly like seeing Trent Reznor covered in mud). At one gig, two roadie dudes waited eagerly to meet the band’s drummer. “Where is he?” they asked. Instead of correcting them right away, my skinny blonde mother, set up the drum set as dudes looked on confused. They had just had it when she asked them to scamper down to Rite Aid to grab her a box of maxi pads. When she finally went on stage, their jaws dropped as they realized they’d been helping the drummer the whole time. (Also, pro Brokelyn tip from mom: maxi pads make great low-budget drum mufflers).

So this was back in the 90s; you may think women’s visibility in music has improved, but, no — even here in New York City, one of the most progressive cities in the world, women have to wade through the daily muck of harassment, especially as they’re first getting their start on stage. Hell, even Bjork and Solange have to wade through the bullshit, often not getting credit for their work the way a guy would. We rounded up a sampling of the best local (and people who play locally a lot) lady musicians to collect musings on trying, and failing, to be taken seriously as a musician and a woman.

Here’s some shit people have said to lady musicians, and what they had to say back.

Freya Wilcox photo by Kaitlyn Laurel McGann.
Freya Wilcox photo by Kaitlyn Laurel McGann.
THE VOICE DOCTOR

“I often get ‘you’re destroying your voice,’ but I’ve been singing like this for years, and it hasn’t given out yet. I’ve also heard, ‘You were great, but you sure do lean on that E-major.’ How are my chords your business? You worry about your voice and your chords, I’ll worry about mine. I’ll admit that I proceeded to play all my E-major heavy songs whenever that guy was around, because I have the microphone and I do what I want.”

– Freya Wilcox, Freya Wilcox & The Howl ” Originally from Australia, Freya Wilcox has been taking over New York City for the past few years with the “road rash howl” of her blues-punk vocals. Her band is rad, their album is rad, and they also have really cool T-shirts. - Brokelyn

American punk and hardcore is firmly rooted in the New York scene, from the Ramones and New York Dolls at CBGB in the 1970′s to the 80′s hardcore surge of Agnostic Front and Sick of It All at ABC No Rio. But things have changed, and New York isn’t quite the same city that it was forty years ago. Things are more colorful now. Announcements on the subway are delivered electronically and easy to understand. People aren’t afraid to walk around on the streets at night. Flamboyantly dressed themed gangs don’t terrorize the five boroughs, and the island of Manhattan has yet to become one large maximum security prison. Hell, there’s even a Whole Foods Market that just opened up right on top of the Gowanus canal. To put it bluntly in punk rock terms: New York has sold out.

However once you break past the Disneyfied surface, you’ll find that New York still has a heart and soul that bleeds and screams “punk rock”. The following bands might not all brandish the same familiar haircuts or studded jackets of yesteryear, but they are armed with a diversity of sounds that keep the spirit of the scene alive and kicking.

You’ll notice that this list focuses on currently active bands, almost all of which have formed within the last decade. Yes, obviously NYC has the best punk scene once you take its history into account, but these ten bands prove that the Big Apple is still not a city to mess with.

You can read the list below...

14. Freya Wilcox
Dirty, bluesy punk rock and roll. The Australian-born Wilcox has the voice of a raw, whiskey-soaked angel. What are you waiting for? Just hit ’play’ already. - Dying Scene

The front page of Freya Wilcox & the Howls website pronounces the band as ``Cutting Brooklyn Blues-Punk with a road rash howl`` and a pretty damn fine self-assessment that is from a band that, on the evidence of ``Bareknuckle Love``, is kicking maximum ass.

Musically Freya Wilcox & the Howl cover a dynamic range that incorporates elements of Rock, Blues and folk and all entwined with a maverick punk spirit. There is a genuine sense of gleeful chaos that lends itself so wonderfully to the overall thrust and spirit that burns so evidently throughout the EP`s five tracks.

The sound and vibe throughout is magnificently boisterous, but the energy is pure, bristling with a smoky intensity that is born for the barroom.

`Bareknuckle Love` is something of a continuum from Freya`s solo acoustic 2013 EP `Dirt Music` with some tracks from that release being revisited and benefiting greatly from the contributions of bassist Craig Shay and drummer CJ Dunaieff who bring to this release a chunky, assailing texture that builds wonderfully upon its more rustic predecessor.


Calling this band the Howl is a remarkable statement of intent as this is indeed music that howls …It also screams, bites, spits and bristles with an almost unrestrained wildness.

Vocally I have seen Freya Wilcox compared to Janis Joplin, which I feel is a lazy means of categorizing any female singer who stamps their material with a passionate rough-hewn authority. Freya Wilcox is very much an original who`s full-blooded roar is very much of her own character and stamped with a vehement charisma that marks her as a true original.



The only let down with this release for me is that it is too damn short. I have to admit that being a child of the 70`s and 80`s I grew up in an era of the album. With EP`s being the prevailing norm at present I am continually finding the journey is over just as its really taking hold. But that`s just an old man’s lament that I have to learn to take in my stride.

`Bareknuckle Love` is a magnificent display of visceral emotion, evocative lyricism and impassioned performance, centred round a gloriously ramshackle Rock & Roll heartbeat.

Check out The Freya Wilcox and the Howl Bandcamp page: - Rock Bottom Review

"When a couple of Long Island punks walked into Manhattan's darkest dive bar to find an Aussie blues singer howling from behind a beat up guitar, one of NYC's most unique new punk bands was born. Before long, Freya's grated ironies and violent bluesy riffs were sitting right at home atop a rhythm section of equally sarcastic and surprisingly talented twenty-somethings, spreading songs about lying to lovers, falling for assholes and fighting for all the wrong things."

Freya Wilcox & The Howl is a 'blues-punk' trio from Brooklyn who's debut album "Bareknuckle Love" will be released May 23rd and is available to pre-order now. The band hit Pittsburgh Tuesday night (5/12) at The Smiling Moose for the EARLY show with fellow New Yorkers Eli Whitney & The Sound Machine. I want to thank Freya (Guitar/Vocals) for taking the time to participate in this edition of First/Last.

The first album you ever bought?
Placebo's “Black Market Music” when I was 11 and apparently experiencing premature existential rage...

Your last album bought?
John Lee Hooker's “Electric Blues”, it's a picture disc; badass.

Favorite album of all time?
I've never been able to choose between Nirvana's “Incesticide” & Janis Joplin's “I Got Dem Ol' Kozmic Blues Again Mama!”

Least favorite/most disappointing album?
I really, really can't do Adele. At all. So I would say I'm most disappointed in whatever record had that ‘Rumor Has It’ song on it. Ack.

First concert attended?
I grew up in Australian folk festivals, so I saw more bands than I could remember before I could even remember. My first stadium concert was Simple Plan though... ouch...

Last concert?
The last big show I went to was Vance Joy in NYC and I was pretty bored. I think that some artists in the digital age are accelerated to success before they learn to interact with their audience well. I also hold Australians to a higher standard of fun than most... Either way I made my own fun.

Favorite concert ever?
Harsh tie between Brody Dalle, John Butler Trio & Neil Young.

Least favorite concert?
This may mean nothing to Americans, but I saw Pete Murray once and he was so boring I wanted to eat grass just to pass the time...

Any thoughts, experiences about Pittsburgh?
I've never been to Pittsburgh before, but any town with both a whisky distillery and a mattress factory probably has good times down right? I'm really looking forward to meeting the locals, I've missed the gems you find in new towns being in NYC for so long, but I have found wonderful people at PA shows in the past!

Thanks, Freya. Yeah, the Mattress Factory is way cool but don't get your hopes up that it is a popular factory that produces mattresses... it is an art museum. - Hugh Shows Pittsburgh

You probably wouldn’t expect those vocals from this Australian born, Brooklyn based singer. Her gritty sound sets her apart from the other punk/blues outfits, grabbing you by the knickers from the very first note. Freya Wilcox’s Janis Joplin gravel and Lucinda Williams smokiness coupled with her own hard rock style make her a must see act. Listen to Freya’s solo work below.
Wilcox is releasing her first full band EP May 23 called “Bareknuckle Love,” with her group Freya Wilcox and the Howl. Freya released “Dirt Music,” in December 2013 as a solo acoustic project. You can catch Freya at the Smiling Moose Tuesday Night along with locals, Super Fun Time Awesome Party Band and Jerry Fels and the Jery Fels along with headliner Eli Whitney and the Sound Machine also from Brooklyn.
Doors open at 6:00 and show starts at 6:30 upstairs. 21+, Only $5 - Sound Scene Express

Last night Freya Wilcox performed at Spike Hill in a quiet and intimate setting. The Australian acoustic-punk singer features a blues background in her songs, telling the story of her life. Performing solo on the stage, Freya tells a commentary previous to each song which carries the audience to a more personal and fun interaction with her music.

The set was varied and lively, she played the banjo, the harmonica along the acoustic guitar, and captivated the audience with her forceful, emotional and distinctive voice. Along with originals, Freya played a cover of a classical old school blues song and Rhiannon of Fleetwood Mac.

Although it was a quiet Sunday evening, Freya’s personality and vigorous songs filled the room with energy. A clear example of the energy and drive of her songs is You Would Do The Same For Me that comes in her album Dirt Music, which she sells at the price of the cheapest beer in the venue of the performance.

Be sure to check out her future shows! - Diffuse BK