Polevaulter’s ‘Hang Wave’ is a sonic doomsday

Photo Credit: Polevaulter

We’re on our way to extinction, surrounded by anxiety, death, and the earth’s destruction. Polevaulter’s latest album Hang Wave is not your solace. On their debut, the UK duo Jon Franz and Daniel Wearmouth push you over the edge to face the darkest corners of the underworld. There is a roughness to Hang Wave. Its jagged electronic synths cut and stab at the ears, each blow digging deeper into the skull. The songs are masterfully constructed—a mix of noise, punk, and electronic clangs reverberating into the ether. The intensity of Franz’s vocal delivery, constantly on the brink of a shouting match, illuminates his inner dialogue, heightening the experience of the soundtrack. 

Hang Wave is the band’s first full-length. Before this, the duo released a pair of EPs, including last year’s Content (we named it one of the best EPs of the year), The album, produced by Shaene Hunter (Shaene), goes further into the wormhole. All songs were tracked live, a testament to Polevaulter’s artistic prowess as a duo. 

From the opening track, “Mia Goth Made Me Do It” there’s a tension—a caffeine-induced anxiety attack. Two beats fight for attention, one drags behind the other. Still, both are aggressive: the first through speed, the other through ominous noise. Across Hang Wave Polevaulter creates soundscapes reminiscent of sonic fireworks (“Trend”), and the distant cries of screaming ghosts (“Pissed in the Baths”). Hang Wave easily soundtracks the end of days.

We connected with band member Jon Franz to discuss sampling, the music industry, visuals, and the album’s recording sessions.

Congrats on the new album Hang Wave! From the moment I heard “Mia Goth Made Me Do It,” I knew this would be special. How did you approach these songs when it came to writing?  

Jon Franz: Thanks a bunch, we're very happy with our first album, perfect platform to build on from our point of view. We make songs starting with whatever comes first. Everything that isn't drums, bass, or vocals on the tracks are 'loops' that I build at home, sometimes we start there. Sometimes the words come first, like 'Trend' or 'Pissed In The Baths' and then we workshop it til it's done.

When recording with producer Shaene Hunter, you chose to do everything live. What do you remember about tracking these songs? What was the energy like in the studio? 

JF: The energy was fun; we also worked hard. We'd set up the gear and discuss the itinerary, get a Spoons lunch at 12, and then go back and track the songs live til we had to leave. Some didn't make the cut, some got beefed up. We had worked out most of it beforehand and Shaene gave us the benefit of a third point of view to direct us and to tone what noises we had in mind. She knew exactly what we were going for and was great to work with. Tracking songs live helped keep us focused and to ground the structures without too much deviation. 

In your song “Riot Dogs” (from the Content EP) you commend the Greek protest dog Loukanikos, while in “Pissed in the Baths” you explore the impact of climate change. Do you view your music as a political act? 

JF: Yes, both Loukanikos and also Matapacos, the Chilean riot dog, I love them two. I just think that I can say whatever I want when writing lyrics and I mostly take aim at things to get them off my chest. I don't know if anyone is listening to my views, but I don't really care either way. If I don't like something, I will say so. That does make us political, but everything is political, whether you like it or not, and I take responsibility for what I say. The other half, Dan, knows and agrees with these things. Plus, it's nice when you meet people who agree with how you feel. It makes the world feel like a better place.  

In other interviews, you’ve talked about building entire songs around a sample. How do you generally approach sampling as a creative tool? 

JF: I love sampling, I love recontextualization. When I hear something I wanna use, it's usually just cause I find it funny or it means something to me. Then you bend it beyond recognition, so that you'd never know where it came from and why it's there, but I know. All our songs will have big bass, drums, and me over the top, but sampling means we can add anything else from infinite sound pallets–textures you can't just pull out of an instrument. No one has ever identified one of our samples to me. I encourage anyone to try and do it.

There was an article in The Guardian recently about the difficulties for working-class artists to sustain their craft, due to rising costs across the board. What’s your take on the current state of the music industry and its support for independent artists?

JF: I don't think there is any support for working-class artists. Half the independent artists who get support are plants or don't need it, and go do something else in two years anyway. Bands like us, or many others from areas like Leeds or Newcastle, have to have full-time jobs and squeeze out 15 shows a year using annual leave and still have no way to avoid hemorrhaging money, eventually dying. There should be a system in place to cover the acts who tour the country, especially when touring Europe, since you're effectively a British export and advocate of the music industry. I'm not actually bothered about an extra pence per stream, because you don't get the kind of fans who can keep you going through reels and playlists. You get them on the road and by shaking their hands. One t-shirt or album sale provides more support than streaming ever gives you. Companies like Spotify don't give a fuck about people like us and are just making it harder anyway. The venues and the touring routes should be protected and funded–much more than they are now. Touring also weeds out the people who think this is easy and that they deserve to live off surface-level artistry. It's as close to manual labour as certain people will ever get. 

How do you approach the visual aspects of your work, whether that’s cover art, merch or music videos? 

JF: We do our own art and don't collaborate on that front very much, if ever. Although we have worked with wonderful people when we've needed to. It's just as important to translate what you are as a band through your visuals, so I try to match them up, or we choose collaborators who get what we're after. Sometimes it's just easier to get your idea across yourself. Regarding merch, I mean sorry Ian MacKaye, but merch is important to bands like us for the reasons I've already mentioned. I do think though, that the merch should just be good enough to wear at any time, not just for outing yourself as a liker of weird music. We'd be dead without the merch money on tours, as would every band, and it's nice to have that connection. It's like a football team, we have a little firm behind us. 

What’s next for Polevaulter now that the album’s out? 

JF: We just released a live session with 4 of the tracks from Hang Wave. We have a very limited vinyl issue of the album too, which is exciting. We are touring all summer. We have three dates in the Baltics and are DIYing the UK and France again, road-testing new material. Work work work!

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Hang Wave is out now. The album can be purchased on CD on Bandcamp. Check out their merch. Follow Polevaulter on Instagram. Go see Polevaulter on tour:

Jun 6 - Tallinn, Estonia @ HUNGR
Jun 7 - Riga, Latvia @ Republika
Jun 8 - Vilnius, Lithuania @ XI20
Jun 13 - Leeds, UK @ Oporto
Jun 25 - Lille, FR @ La Brat Cave
Jun 26 - Paris, FR @ TBD
Jun 27 - Bordeaux, FR @ L’Avant Scene
Jun 28 - Bellême, FR @ Cafe Le MIDI
Jun 29 - Le Mans, France @ Cortex Private Party
Jun 30 - Nantes, France @ Au Chien Stupide
Jul 10 - London, UK @ Sebright Arms
Jul 11 - Brighton, UK @ Pipeline
Jul 12 - Falmouth, UK @ Fish Factory
Jul 13 - Manchester, UK @ PINK
Jul 16 - Huddersfield, UK @ Parish Dive Bar
Jul 17 - Middlesbrough, UK @ Disgraceland
Jul 18 - Newcastle, UK @ Zerox

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