WOOF. Bad Connection Album Review + Q&A

Today we have an album review with WOOF. whom we included as a hidden gem almost a year ago. We have followed him as he continues to post track after track on Soundcloud and there is finally an album, Bad Connection released on Tree Machine Records last month. We recently shared “Nothing to Say” which is included on the album.

While comparisons are sometimes trite, Beck has to be an influence, as that was the first artist that popped into mind after hearing some of WOOF.’s early tracks. After an entire listen of the 13 track album, I also need to add similarities to Bop English (James Petralli of White Denim). WOOF. aka Kelan Bonislawski has over 25+ tracks on soundcloud and continues to evolve and create a myriad of different genres and sounds with each newly created single.This album actually creates a good connection with me because many of the tracks have an awesome 90s nostalgia feel (including the lyrics of “A Time Less Crowded” which speaks to our highly un-personal society and our fascination with online experiences) but are still mixed up to be fresh and new. Ever since hearing the track “I Got Away”, it was evident that one needed to keep tabs on WOOF. Sharing two favorite tracks off the album and below we have a little Q&A with Mr. Bonislawski.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/229181934″ params=”color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false” width=”100%” height=”120″ iframe=”true” /]

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/229182003″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”120″ iframe=”true” /]

You have over 25 tracks posted on SoundCloud in less than a year. When it takes some artists/bands to release 10-13 tracks per year for an album, what is your secret? Do you just have a massive catalog of songs you have made over the years that you are steadily releasing or are you really just a production genius to churn out so many songs?

I have a massive catalogue of incomplete songs and unfleshed out ideas. I’ve released almost everything I’ve finished, excluding a few super weird ones that I don’t know what to do with. Every song I make is just a means to figure out how the next one can be better than the last. There’s no secret other than keep going and don’t be afraid to end up with a shitty song every once in a while, just keep going and don’t quit. Persistence I guess.

Being a solo artist and one that has gained traction in the past year, would you ever see yourself actually forming a band to play live?

I’d love to play my songs with a band. Between family and work, the free time I have to record is limited to a few hours every weekend, so it’s hard to imagine having enough time to practice with a band. So I’m just working on improving my recordings for now, and seeing where that leads me.

How many instruments do you play?

My setup consists of a few guitars and a synth. And I sing because I have no one else to do it for me. I don’t consider myself proficient at any one instrument. When I’m recording, and I hear an isolated track, it’s nothing special on it’s own. I think I’m good at bringing a lot of small, simple pieces together to create an interesting conglomerate. I like the puzzle of finding the pieces that fit.

How do you balance life and music?

I need to record. There was a period in my life where I wasn’t playing or recording, because it didn’t seem like a practical hobby to have while having a full-time job and raising a family. I could easily get sucked in and record for ten hours straight when I was a teenager, but that’s not an option now. For the past couple years, I’ve been devoting 2 or 3 hours on the weekend for music, and I’ve found I’m much happier doing that, and it’s forced me to have to figure out how to do it quickly. My wife likes to go on long runs, and I like to record. It’s a reflective, therapeutic time, I think we get a similar release from those activities. Everyone needs some sort of self time to re-calibrate.

At first I thought Bad Connection would have just been a compilation of the songs you have already released, so it was nice to hear a few extras in there and it being a solid 13 tracks. Was it hard choosing which ones to put on the album?

I just tried to fit in everything I recorded in the past year, plus a few songs I thought fit the mood of the album. There were a couple songs that didn’t make the cut, just because they weren’t fully realized yet. Those ones might be re-imagined and worked into the next album.

Have your expectations been met this year with your music? What is your ultimate goal with your career?

I don’t have many expectations. My only goal is to keep trying to improve my songs and recordings. If the music gets some attention, that fuels me to keep going, and if it doesn’t, it won’t stop me. It’s cliche, but I’m really only doing this for myself. Of course I want people to like what I make, and it’s gratifying when they do, but even if they hated it, I’m sure that would motivate me to work harder.

—

Overall, this album is really awesome. I included “Soybean/Barn Swallow” for it’s groovy/70s/psych vibe and there are other tracks that pull from the psychedelic world like “Mine”, “Morbid Fascination”, “A Time Less Crowded” and “Baba”. The title track “Bad Connection” is also a solid one with an airy feel of more psych, reverb and tambourine. “Wake” is another favorite and a love song most definitely. Mr. Bonislawski is crafting awesome musical puzzles as he referenced above – constructing a myriad of different sounds and genres all together to make each new track a marvelously and unique sonic piece of art. Speaking of art, he also creates his own awesome poster/cover art and has a really trippy yet awesome interactive GIF for the album. You can skip your next two pumpkin spiced lattes at starbucks and go buy his album, here.