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The Wild War came in Wednesday, March 4 for a live studio performance at the KSL Broadcast House. They played "I Saw This." Mark Nott filmed and edited the video, which you can also watch on KSL.com's YouTube.SALT LAKE CITY — Immediately after becoming friends when they were 14, Kevin Edwards and Dan Johnson began playing in bands and creating music together, and they played in a number different bands through the years, before starting the two-piece, The Wild War.
Both Edwards and Johnson grew up in homes where music was played all around them. This had a profound affect on their interests, and their music is still influenced greatly by the type of music played in their home.
By the time they met each other, they were ready to play in a band and create their own music, but it wasn’t until they started The Wild War that they truly found their sound.
And the sound they found with The Wild War is hard-hitting psych-rock balanced with emotive singing and highly personal lyrics of change and questioning.
Edwards said his writing is also heavily influenced by growing up and living in Salt Lake City, and the difference in cultures present here.
“The music we’ve been writing lately is directly influenced by the opposing cultures that are here, and this interesting culture where there’s two opposite sides of people,” Edwards said.
The musicians have seen themselves change over the years and even seen how their music and sound has changed over the last couple of years.
“We could re-record our older songs now and it would sound completely different,” Edwards said.
This change may be attributed to changes in their personal lives, but it has also been a change brought about from playing around Salt Lake and the experiences they have had playing for live audiences.
Related:
In Studio: Big Wild Wings creates catchy synth-based alt rock
Friday, Jan. 20, Big Wild Wings joined us in the KSL studios to film an in-studio performance, playing their song, "Someday Dreams."Being a part of the music scene in Salt Lake has helped The Wild War develop its own personal style, as well as the benefits of being apart of a burgeoning and supportive scene.
“We kind of get inspiration from other local bands,” Johnson said. “Salt Lake City is a pretty small community, so I think it is kind of starting to develop it’s own sound, and it is really cool being apart of it.”
“It’s amazing. It’s a really positive culture,” Edwards added. “It’s cool to see how much support there is here.”
Edwards and Johnson also said they have noticed an increase of new and different people coming out to the shows — an observation that many bands around have made.
The Wild War has continued writing and hopes this year to record as much as possible, with the release of a new EP in the late spring. Follow their progress on Facebook or Twitter and Instagram under the handle, @thewildwar.
