Punk’s not dead
The obscure punk lifestyle is like a rabid dog chomping at the bits for any kind of relief from this continued mentality of isolation. The self-imposed trap of “not being enough” feels almost faded when Chattanooga punk band, Gumm, takes the stage with such loud liberations. In fact, their shows give delightful animation to the growing multifaceted cultures in our city. Our local punk welcomes any misfits by cultivating a healthy space to relieve the social pressure of fitting in. In my inspired frenzy haze, I finally got to speak with Drew. The lead singer has a lot to say about his band’s contributions to the local punk scene and the expansion of his self-made sound over the years.
Interview with Gumm
First of all, how did you get started up in Chattanooga? What’s the story behind your band?
“So we’ve been a band for three or four years now. It feels longer than that honestly. We started [our album] Staring through You in 2017, but we’ve all been a part of the local scene here for a long time. Phillip, the bassist, and I have been best friends since middle school and we started going to punk shows when we were fifteen. I even tried to start a band with Phillip when I was eleven!! The rest of us met through different bands in high school and in late 2017 we merged from those bands and kinda made our own sound.” - Drew Waldon [LS GUMM]
Tell me how you guys found your sound. What sparked the drive for this particular genre of music?
“We’ve been drawn to making punk music since we were kids. But honestly, different things at different times in my life made me fall in love with it. There's always new things to like about punk. Although my taste has been adaptable, when I first found it I fell in love with the fact that it was so accessible. In the fifth grade, when I heard my Dad play Holiday by Green Day for the first time it seemed so simple. The music on the radio seemed unreachable before and when I heard it from him, music was transcribable to me for the first time.”
Who do you draw inspiration from?
“When I was sixteen, Minor Threat really inspired me and they still inspire me ten years later. What attracted me most to punk is it requires no cosign. It’s a self-starter. Minor Threat did it all without a major label – even producers of punk have the same self-starter energy. Not to say other genres of music don’t have the same ambitions, but with punk, there’s still passion for it. It’s not so much about capitalistic agendas. It’s like you wanna do cool shit, let’s go do cool shit. You're working for your opportunities.”
Do you think there’s an oversaturation of punk in mainstream media? In what ways can we keep the culture alive?
“I don’t know if there is any fixing of the saturation in the media. That shouldn’t be the goal because you can’t really control it. You can’t rely on handouts from people in this world. It should be about going back to what you value in punk. The best way to keep anything alive is to keep creating alternatives and stop burying yourself in comparison.”
What social breakthroughs do you think Chattanooga is making with this outlet of expression?
“speaking directly about the hardcore scene in Chatt, it’s attracting a newer crowd of people who haven’t really heard punk before. Even with that though, it’s cool that it’s still small and intimate. It gives me an outlet of expression and a valuable social outlet. Since we’ve been a part of it a long time, the band gets to essentially see the space grow with older and newer people. It’s an eclectic scene under one big umbrella of punk. We all mesh well.”
What's the one message you want for Gumm?
“I want us to be a unified factor in Chattanooga because a lot of us are putting in a lot of effort to making this hardcore punk work. There’s no hierarchy. Everyone is important in the show and outside of the show. There’s a lot of moving parts and I want Gumm to serve as a unifying factor where everyone can come together and enjoy themselves. Hardcore punk is about feeling like family. No cliques. It’s about getting something from the music. Express what you need to express. I stay grounded by people who lift me up and I am really fortunate in that. Be available to the people who are available for you.”
Upcoming Local Gigs: The Spot on April 8th with Modern Color; May 1st Poor Taste with Meat Thermometer. Insta: @gummpunk Promo Pic: @Olen Live: @Caleb Mccool
Transcribed Interview 03.01.22
In conclusion, when you’re at a punk show it’s not about what you look like or how old you are. It’s about slipping through the cracks of your insecurities and embracing the rage within you. It’s about taming yourself and owning your emotional states.
Our inner teenagers are bringing back the infectious punk energy of angst because we’ve all been locked up in our rooms for the last two years. The liberation of embracing every moment in our lives may be exactly what we need to feel our way back to being comfortable in our own skin.
There's beauty in the complete mayhem of losing yourself in Gumm’s music. You can finally let go of the chip on your shoulder because it’s probably only what you’ve been conditioned to think.
Strike Out,
Writer: Heaven Lanagan
Graphic Designer: Brennen Purcell
Editor: Jane Dodge
Chattanooga