WACX

We’re WACX, a Hard Rock/Punk band formed in the summer of 2016, that loves to play high voltage, heavy, grinding and groovy music. We draw our influences from the different eras of music, bringing a dynamic wall of sound and a live energetic act wherever we go. While we have our roots in classic rock and punk rock, our band’s sound combines the soundscapes of Led Zeppelin, Guns N’ Roses, Blink 182 and Alter Bridge to name a few.

We made our debut last October at Bay 146, one of Chennai’s most popular performance venues, and continued to tour multiple cities. However, our highlight so far, was when we were a part of the Monkey Town Arts and Music Festival, held in Ooty, and played alongside indie giants like Junkyard Groove, Thaikkudam Bridge and Jhanu. We are currently working on our 6-track debut EP titled ‘Scramble’, which has been planned for release by the end of January 2018. We are prepping up for touring and promoting our EP across the country.

​

Ashwath Nair – The band’s newest member and frontman, Ashwath has been an active member of the music scene for a little more than a decade both as a spectator and a photographer. Before WACX, Ashwath also sessioned with indie darlings Skrat during the run-up to their first album “Design”. Besides music, Ashwath pursues a full-time career in photography and film production, where he photographs/films musicians, dancers, babies and even pets. His vocal inspirations range from Aretha Franklin and Frank Sinatra to Myles Kennedy and Randy Blythe. He’s also a staunch believer of the “no genre” school of musical though where music can’t be classified into genres, rather into states of heaviness.

​

Brian Paiva – Brian has been active in the music scene since his college days which would wind the clock back to around 10 years. He was a part of multiple bands along with groove-meister, Jitesh, most notably being a part of the band – Garage Monsters Inc. which was one of the few bands that made it to the finals of The Great Indian Rock Festival. Having taken quite a long break, he is back in the scene with a bigger voice and heavier riffing! He currently works in Wipro as a Project Manager.

​

Jitesh James Dharmaraj – Jitesh is among the most popular musicians in and around Chennai. He was one of the founding members of Junkyard Groove which formed way back in 2005. He then took a break from music to focus on motorcycle racing but found his way back to music. He also plays the Bass Guitar for two more famous bands – Tails on Fire and RJD – The Band. His bands have opened for some of the biggest names in world music such as Iron Maiden, Scorpions, Robert Plant, Incubus and many more. Being active in the scene for almost 15 years, he is the most experienced musician in the band.

​

Vijay Krishnan – Vijay is the youngest member of the band and has been active in the music scene for around 5 years although he did follow the whole indie scene since his school days. Besides WACX, Vijay also was the guitarist for The Beta Funktion. Vijay recently made his
breakthrough as a musician by sharing the stage with the ever-popular Junkyard Groove as the band’s new lead guitarist. Currently, he works as a Content Manager for IAE GLOBAL INDIA, an Educational Consultancy.

​

Preetham Dev Moses – Preetham, the eldest member is an experienced percussionist who has played with various musicians and artists over the years. Drumming took a break when he decided to pursue Motorcycle Racing. He is the first Indian multiple national motorcycle racing champion and holds the honour of being the first Indian ever selected to represent India at the Moto GP World Racing Championship. Another sudden break from racing led him to form Red Brick Constructions, a construction company that he currently owns and runs. He has recently revived his drumming with WACX and is the reason behind the band’s rock solid no-nonsense grooves.