#5 - How The Gods Chill
An Interview with Cold World's Nick Woj + From The Ground Up webstore stocked up
What’s up everybody? Welcome back. I’m freshly home from the return of Richmond’s classic UNITED BLOOD fest and exhausted as hell, but the desire to publish capital-A niche content never sleeps… The fest was a good time, and felt like the U.B. of old, real time capsule vibes. Between this and the Rebirth Showcase last month, It feels good to know we can still have smaller scale, D.I.Y. ‘core fests that just feel like a big show in an era where multi-day HC bonanzas keep growing in scope and in scale. It was a big weekend for SCHEME RECORDS: Dynamite, Collateral and Echo Chamber all had awesome sets; probably my three favorites of the weekend.
Last time I was in Richmond, we hit some sneaker stores and I copped Cactus Jack 4’s for a steal, and the lads were dead set on finding another deal. Friend of the newsletter Breza scored a pair of Shadow 1’s for way cheap and I picked up PSG 5 lows for $70. Pretty good score…
PLAYLIST:
John Coltrane - Giant Steps
Justice - S/T
Rawkus Records ‘Soundbombing II’ Compilation
Victim - S/T
Striking Distance - March To Your Grave
HOW THE GODS CHILL: An Interview with Nick Woj.
This joint probably doesn’t even need any sort of introduction. If you like hardcore… you more than likely are a Cold World fan; Few bands are more universally appreciated by all different types of ‘core appreciators than Wilkes-Barre’s most dope. There’s a lot I could say about the band - and their drummer, Nick Woj - in terms of contribution to the zeitgeist of what’s “cool” in hardcore, but I’ll let the interview speak for itself.
From The Ground Up: What’s up? First of all thanks for agreeing to do this interview. Introduce yourself for the readers
Nick Woj: Hey man, thanks for asking. My name's Nick Woj and I play drums in the band Cold World and do some other stuff here and there.
FTGU: What was the first sneaker you ever saw that made you have the “yo… I think I’m into shoes” moment. Were you able to cop a pair or was it just one you admired from afar?
NW: Well I'm old, so in the 80's I was really into skateboarding. Airwalks (the original ones with big bird on the side), Vans and Vision Streetwear were pretty much the only skate shoes at the time. I remember particularly sweating Blue Suede Vision Streetwears and my Mom getting them for me. VSW's had this really cool red, black and blue kind of static looking print on the outsole. I'm from PA but half grew up in Florida with my Mom. She was a working single mother so she could swing skate shoes, but when Jordans started becoming popular, I would have to wait until I was in PA with my grandparents to ask for those. I remember being in Florida and seeing 4's at the mall but them being too expensive. My first Jordans were 6's, which I got in Wilkes-Barre, I believe at the Foot Locker at the Wyoming Valley Mall. I have pretty vivid memories of it. I remember picking up and inspecting the Mowabbs, which came out the same year. So yeah, mid/late 80's was when I first started admiring sneakers.
FTGU: I feel like when I first got into ‘core it was like this noticeable thing that HC kids from Philly/Wilkes Barre and just PA in general just seemed to have more of a vibe of being into sneakers than a lot of other scenes. Like seeing dudes in AM97s and anorak jackets when everyone else was like wearing vans and a hoodie kinda deal. Do you feel like there’s a specific band or people who were a tastemaker that kinda started that, or did it happen more organically?
NW: I think the 90s Philly hardcore scene had people dipping their toes into different music styles and swags more than any other scene that I know of. More importantly, I think it wasn't frowned upon, it was almost encouraged. Whereas, you see other scenes like the Midwest or Cali where corny hardcore guys would have shirts that say shit like "X EMO KILLER X" because kids were getting into Belle & Sebastian or whatever, I don't think it was like that in the Philly area until the mid-00s when everything got ruined. So you'd have this mix of kids who were informed by traditional hc, britpop/shoegaze, hip-hop, graffiti, etc. Sean McCabe would be a great example of that. I'm a generation or so younger than him and obviously from Wilkes-Barre, so don't get me wrong, I'm sure there were rougher segments of the Philly scene where they didn't love Ink & Dagger. But that kind of mix of styles definitely made it's way to W-B, so my generation was kind of being influenced off the tail end of that open-mindedness but at the same time it was the Youth Crew Revival era, so there was an emphasis on Jordans and 80s kicks. Me personally, I was into hip-hop and drum n bass music almost as much as I was into hardcore, so I was being influenced by that as well. When I moved to Philly and cliqued up with some dudes from here who were into the same stuff we just went harder with it. We were definitely going to shows with vintage Polo, kicks, North Face, Japanese shit, etc. But we weren't trying to influence other hardcore kids, we were trying to be ourselves, we didn't think that had anything to do with hardcore. Personally, I didn't like seeing that catch on in HC after us because I felt like they just weren't doing it right. So yeah, long-winded answer... Definitely organic, kids being into cool shit in the 90's not necessarily sweating anyone specific compared to like the Romulan/Spock style which can be traced directly to someone like Justin Pearson.
FTGU: Trends obviously go up and down in sneaker culture but it feels like HC has its own weird ecosystem of shoes that’s completely detached from mainstream sneakerhead shit. Like I never saw one hardcore kid wearing Yeezys when those were the hype shoes for normal people… what do you think is the quintessential HC kid sneaker for ‘coremen into shoes and why?
NW: Well, between those time periods I discussed on the last question and now, sneaker culture kind of become mainstream/hip-hop culture right? In my era of sneaker collecting, it was more about having what other people didn't have or more importantly, didn't know about. With Yeezys and the whole reselling culture happening. I actually think HC kids wearing cool sneakers now are more influenced by that then this strand of HC people we're talking about. And it's not like HC kids were into super obscure or uncool sneakers of the time. Air Max 95's and Jordan 1's? We're hardly digging in the crates here. I think it's just a segment of the HC crowd who are also into other subcultures, sports, fashion etc. And we bring that influence in and mix it with HC and it seems new but it's no big deal. But at the same time, I do think brands need to realize that Youth Of Today made Jordans look just as cool as any rapper or Athlete. So there's something to what you're saying but I wouldn't overstate it, personally. If you think Air Maxes are only cool with HC kids, you need to get out of the pit a little, brotha. If we're being honest, the quintessential HC kid sneaker is the Vans Old Skool. I haven't been vegetarian for a long time, but I think that's an important part of HC so I feel it needs to be a sneaker that's inclusive to that. I also loved the New Balance 574 as a HC kid sneaker, but ONLY the original ones with the synthetic leather from the late 90s/early 00s. I'll also mention the Air Revolution, which is definitely a sneaker that's beloved by Youth Crew heads but isn't necessarily a sneaker known by modern sneakerheads.
FTGU: I definitely don’t think Air Max is only popular with HC kids, I get what you’re saying. Changing gears a little… Ice Grillz turned 20 last year. Looking back, Cold World is a band that had remained relevant and beloved as trends change and generations of HC kids come and go. What do you think it is about the band that keeps you guys important to kids who are just now finding hardcore?
CW: As long as you're not looking for metalcore/beatdown chugga/growl style, CW kind of has something for everyone. The base of the sound is definitely HC but we're throwing in cues from stuff like 90s indie rock, hip-hop, electronic music, heavy metal etc. We're basically just being ourselves. I would hope that's what comes through in the music and appeals to new people getting into HC now and in the future.
FTGU: Cold World has one of the best merch catalogs of any band in history… what 4 CW designs are on your Mount Rushmore of favorites?
CW: I really like these new ones I've been doing where I basically just make a promo tee for a rap album and put one of our faces on the rapper. Be on the look out for "Confessions of Scace", which I think should be the 4th one of those.
FTGU: I’ve always heard that you have been involved with designing sneaker collabs for Awake NYC… how did you wind up doing that and what projects are you most proud of that you’ve been involved in?
NW: Yeah I came on board there to help with the Air Ship project and have been there since. Sneaker-wise, we're about to come out with our Jordan 5 this year and have something sick cooking for the near future as well. Before that I was at Concepts, which is a Boston-based store mostly known for their Lobster Dunk SB projects. I did a lot of sneakers over there from the Green, Purple, Orange & Albino Lobster Dunks, the Air Max 1 three-pack, a bunch of NBs, Asics, Vans, Reebok Iverson, Mephisto etc. The upcoming Awake Jordan 5 will be the one I'm most proud of as well as the Concepts Air Maxes.
FTGU: What’s a dream project for you to design? If you could choose Any brand, any silhouette to do what would you pick.
NW: Apparel-wise I'd love to work with CDG or Undercover. Sneaker-wise it's gotta be Air Max 95 or to help bring back something I love like the Zoom Haven or Air Max 2003.
FTGU: What’s your favorite Wilkes-Barre HC release of all time?
NW: Bedford - A Million Ways To Spend My Time 7". Honorable mentions: Burial Ground - Let Us Pray, Nothing Left Fanzine Sampler #7 & Title Fight - Hyperview.
FTGU: Put these AMs in order best to worst: Infrared 90, Neon 95, Silver Bullet 97, Gundam 98, Sunset TN.
NW: Neon 95, Silver Bullet 97, Gundam 98 (Even though I've never owned this color!), Sunset TN & Infrared 90 are tied.
FTGU: Thanks again man. Any last words / shout outs / stuff you got going on you’d like people to check out?
NW: No doubt. CW is gigging here and there and working on new music so be on the lookout for that. Peep my soundcloud for my little bedroom mixtapes I make, www.soundcloud.com/w0javelli. Shoutout to all the new HC and not-so-HC bands doing their own thing.
April 2025 New HC Round Up
Dynamite - Settle The Score • I’ve seen this band a few times over the past few months, and every time it was super cool. This record is a big step up from their last release. SCHEME SOLDIERS…
Naysayer - Rage Dreams • I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Naysayer is one of the bands from the ‘09 era that has aged the best. Their music is timeless, and this record is just more Naysayer (positive connotation there). Certain bands understand that when you’re really cookin’, there’s no need to alter the recipe, and Naysayer is one of them. Good stuff.
Our Fight - Here To Stay • Coming from scene/group of members who are more known for heavier HC, this is them doing fast, straight edge hardcore… and it’s pretty damn good. Two songs clocking in at 3 minutes make this easy to listen to over and over again. Love the name and Clevo-core style lettering on the logo. Rebirth records at it again!
Terminator - April Showers Bring May Flowers • Toronto HC that sounds like Clevo HC mixed with Think I Care - World Asylum. I’m moshing, you’re moshing. I will say… I don’t really understand whats going on with the art. Why is there a goose on the cover? Unsure, but the songs are hard so fuck it.
Down To The Wire - Demo • I play in this band so I won’t say too much… but what started out as an experiment to see if we could record a demo with a four track recorder has turned into a full blown band. Phila-Cola SxE connect is back to pick up where Payback and Off The Tracks left off.
Shirts & Bumper Stickers up now on the webstore.
We got a couple things up on our webstore (click here) now, including a tee-shirt featuring Cornelius AKA the Kicks Wizard (who you may have seen on light posts and dumpsters around Philly) and two different big-ass, old-school bumper stickers. These will be up for a limited time: You got about two weeks to cop so tell a friend and get one before they’re gone, unless you suffer from A2C…
Thats all for this one… Unfortunately my camera is still busted, so we’re light on photos as I couldn’t snap anything good at UB. Hopefully by next month that’ll be remedied and we’ll be back on track. Thanks for reading, and keep telling your friends to subscribe. Until next time… PEACE!