Music > Interviews

Wonk Unit

24/05/16

Wonk Unit came up with their name when they were laying a crazy paving driveway. They’re a positive, hilarious punk band who’ll win your hearts over with their brilliant tracks. You may have seen them supporting Slaves, their mates, at UEA last year. In any case, they’re playing a headline show at The Owl Sanctuary this month for a mere £5, and I had a proper nice chinwag with Daddy Wonk himself about the punk ethos, being sober and the therapeutic benefits of poetry.

Can you describe your band for those who haven’t heard or seen you before?

We are a friendly bunch of silly chaps, we’re very positive human beings, we take out music incredibly seriously but we don’t take life seriously. We are the coolest band in the world but also seriously not cool for school. We’re not down with the cool crowd! We don’t give a shit; there are no rules.

How did you find the other members of Wonk Unit?

Our line up is very fluid. Essentially I am Wonk Unit and because I’m so focused on what I do and we have a relentless touring schedule generally people can’t keep up with me. For the last two years we’ve had the same line up. Pwosion Mark joined us fairly nearly the beginning about five years ago. We’ve had Tommy with us for three years, and Benny was a little hooligan from Mansfield who was getting in trouble with the police, but he was a very good guitarist, which I recognised in him so I pulled him out of Mansfield, brought him to London and made him work with me on a building site to sort him out.

You manage the band yourself and tour endlessly. Are you able to hold down a day job as well?

I am a builder. We played Oslo last night and today I’m sorting out my tools and I’m back on site tomorrow morning.

What’s the hardest thing about managing it all yourself?

Up until recently I was on top of it all but we’ve started to get stupidly busy, I don’t have two minutes spare to sit down and relax so I’ve been trying to enlist a few people recently to help. In general what I’ve learnt is if you don’t do it yourself people will fuck it up, so if you want it done properly you have to do it yourself.

It’s coming up to Wonkfest, your punk festival taking place in Tufnell Park in London. Norwich’s Ducking Punches are playing as well as one of our favourite new acts from Stevenage, Bad Breeding.

Yeah you introduced me to Bad Breeding! I’m don’t really listen to music – I like making and performing music in the same way as I like skateboarding. It’s kinda like my AA. I’m an ex alcoholic, I’ve been sober for 17 years, so music helps me in that way. Very occasionally I’ll see or hear a band who I find inspiring and Bad Breeding I thought looked great so I booked them up quickly. Wonkfest is all about the new bands. Up until a few years ago the punk scene was run by all the old dinosaurs and they held no interest for me whatsoever. But what has happened since we started Wonkfest was suddenly you’ve got Manchester Punk Festival, The Gathering in Liverpool, Podstock in Norwich – people doing their own mini Wonkfests. So it’s happening all around.

What does the word punk mean to you?

I’ve been involved in the UK punk scene since 1992, and for me it’s always been about the music. When Snuff appeared and changed punk forever in my eyes they blew me away, and I’ve always been more into the punk sound than the political movement. Even though we agree with 99.9% of the politics of punk Wonk Unit and Wonkfest aren’t into preaching to the converted and we won’t use ‘punk’ as a tool to gain more fans. Because of the state of this country and the current government it’s now impossible to ignore what’s happening - inequality, people starving all around the world. So Wonk Unit are becoming more politically active but that’s just because we’re humans rather than punks. We can’t ignore the fact that we live in a very unfair society now.

Punk is still considered by some to be an underground genre despite its popularity and I wondered why you think that might be?

The DIY underground is thriving at the moment, it’s happening right now. If you look at these awful 40th anniversary celebrations of the start of the punk that the government have organised it’s the most appalling thing ever to have happened. Our good friends Slaves have come from the UK underground and are bringing punk to the mainstream. There are a whole generation of kids today getting into punk through their music, which is amazing. You’ve got the DIY underground, which is definitely an underground subculture, and then you’ve got punk with the studs and leather as the public see it.  I think they’re two very different things – our punk has Utopian values, the other sort of punk is more interested in drinking cider.

Why is it called Mr Splashy?

Because when I used to have a wash at my mum and dad’s house, my mum would come in a say “Mr Splashy’s been here again” because I splashed water all over the sink and all over the place.

When’s the new album due out and what treats can we expect on it?

It’ll be released in September and we’ll tour Europe, then America and we’ll do England in November and December.

Have you always written words to help you express yourself  through songs and poetry?

90% of my songs start as poems, I don’t traditionally write songs or music, just poetry. Every so often I look at a poem from my blog and I go I’m going to write some music to this poem. My poetry started off as a laugh in the old MySpace days, I used to write Shakespearean building poetry about me being a bricklayer, totally taking the piss really. I found I quite enjoyed creative writing so I wrote a book and did a lot of writing about sex.

I love your artwork and T shirts, I’m considering investing in the I Love My Vagina one. Do you do all the artwork Alex?

Yeah I do. All the Wonk t shirt art is first attempt generally using my left hand. I never push my art so if it doesn’t happen the first time it’s not going to happen. It’s a very organic way of doing it. Like my poetry and our songs I will never push it, it has to be pure inspiration. I don’t sit down and decide to do it, I have to be inspired there and then. I don’t craft it. My artwork for t shirts is done in 30 seconds, and my poems are done within 10 minutes. I’m always honest in what I do. I am an addict, an ex alcoholic, and I started writing when I got sober so I encourage people to write and get it out of themselves. It’s good to channel your juices into creative avenues rather than drink.

Who will be supporting you on your next tour?

I have no idea! Hopefully this amazing band that I found called Pizza Tramp. If you like punk you’re going to love them, they’re from the Valleys in Wales. On record they sound like good punk but when you see them live they are fantastic.

You recently got married, Alex! Congratulations!

Yeah it was the best! It was well good. I’ve been with Aoife for six years, she’s my best friend and the best in the world but I never imagined getting married could be so magical, like a fairy tale. We got married on the beach at Venice Beach in Los Angeles.

I heard you met Mike D from the Beastie Boys while you were out there!

The Beastie Boys were the biggest influence on my previous band The Flying Medallions back in the 90’s. I just said hi, great to meet you, and then I just shut up because I thought I’ve shaken the man’s hand and that will do me.

You’re playing at our beloved Owl Sanctuary next month. Have you been to the new venue yet?

I haven’t, no. I loved the old Owl, and when I was there, that’s when Michael Jackson died, and so forever I will associate that with that place. Norwich is brilliant, I can’t wait to get back there.

Wonk Unit play The Owl Sanctuary on 17th June. Tickets priced at just £5 are available from musicglue.com/the-owl-sanctuary.