To Fisz and Emade (Bartek Waglewski and Piotrek Waglewski), this guitar trio is more than just a break from hip-hop. Kim Nowak has already published two albums and has become a serious band that regularly plays club and outdoor concerts.
The Waglewski brothers have been making hip-hop since the end of the 20th century. They are known for transgressing the genre’s boundaries by adding elements of jazz, funk and rock to their rap songs. After being on stage for 10 years and after the release of the album Heavi Metal, Fisz and Emade decided that it was time to return to their teenage passion. Before they became rappers they were fascinated by metal and punk and they had an instrumental group. The music they played was wild and street orientated – just like rap.
In Kim Nowak Bartek Waglewski doesn’t rap - he sings and he plays bass. Piotrek is the drummer. Over the years Piotrek had done a lot of studio and concert work on the drum set. However he usually made music that was much different compared to the songs played by Kim Nowak. In the guitar trio he has with his brother, he has to hit harder.
The family rhythm section is backed by guitarist Michał Sobolewski, who is a few years younger than the siblings. The line-up brings to mind such groups as NoMeansNo, Nirvana, the Jimi Hendrix Experience or Cream (these bands were mentioned by the Waglewski brothers in interviews). In studio they record their songs in live takes (they all play simultaneously). This way the recordings turn out wild, spontaneous and unpolished. Their music is meant to be dirty.
Bartek Waglewski’s short, simple lyrics may be even better than the words of the songs by the band Fisz Emade (which are full of nostalgia and childhood memories). The limitations of the rock song form bring out the best in the author. In Kim Nowak he often uses simple associations – “blood”, “night”, “heat”, “heart”, “knife”. These lyrics are harsh and sensual.
Kim Nowak’s retro inspirations stretch from the wild guitar times of the 1960s and '70s to the '80s, when the Beastie Boys played guitar hardcore and Sonic Youth was drifting away from the avant-garde and from the no wave scene towards creating “ordinary” songs based on riffs. Kim Nowak’s albums also include songs that bring to mind older styles. For instance, Prosto w ogień / Straight into the Fire has a rockabilly vibe and it features an appearance by the vocalist Izabela Skrybant-Dziewiątkowska, who is a member of the band Tercet Egzotyczny.
Jacek Świąder, Gazeta Wyborcza, June 2013
Albums:
2010 – Kim Nowak
2012 – Wilk