Sam James Matlock (born 16 March 1993) is a British guitarist and singer. He formed the rock band Dead! in 2012 and entered the UK Rock & Metal Albums Chart with that band's The Golden Age of Not Even Trying in 2018; after they split up, he recruited musician Milkie Way for his own band named Wargasm, which launched in August 2019 and entered the UK Albums Chart in 2023 with Venom. He has also co-written the Bambie Thug song "Doomsday Blue" and played live with Jamie Lenman. In November 2021, he attracted press attention after being assaulted at Scala by security guards, who were subsequently fired.

Life and career

Sam James Matlock[1] was born on 16 March[2] 1993[3] and is the son of a music publicist[4] and Glen Matlock, the bassist for the Sex Pistols, who in May 2022 were described by Matt Mills of Metal Hammer as "one of rock's most infamous bands".[5] He and his brother Louis[6] both attended Ryde School[7] and Southampton Solent University.[8] He got into guitar music via Nirvana[9] and formed Dead! with Louis, Sam Chappell, and Alex Mountford while at university; the band signed to Infectious Records in May 2016[8] and had moved to London by the following year.[10] They released the 2018 album The Golden Age of Not Even Trying,[11] which charted at No. 11 on the UK Rock & Metal Albums Chart,[12] before announcing that they would split up following a gig in October 2018.[13]

Straight after Dead!'s dissolution, Matlock direct messaged the band's photographer Milkie Way.[4] At the time, he was working behind a bar[14] and was looking to form a project with a riot grrrl attitude and female vocals;[15] this became Wargasm, who launched in August 2019.[16] They began producing pop punk[17] but soon pivoted to nu metal.[18] During the COVID-19 lockdown, both moved in with Way's parents.[4] The pair released the mixtape Explicit: The Mixxxtape (2022) and the album Venom (2023),[19] which respectively charted at number 19 on the UK Rock & Metal Albums Chart and number 88 on the UK Albums Chart.[20] One track from Venom, "Bang Ya Head",[21] was written about Matlock's experiences working behind a bar.[22]

Matlock performing as part of Wargasm in 2022

In May 2021, Matlock joined Jamie Lenman for his Separation Event livestream, a live playing of his pandemic King of Clubs mini-album, deputising for PENGSHUi's Illaman on "Summer of Discontent".[23] In July 2024, he featured on Crashface's "Maniac", a track about the extracurricular requirements of musicians,[24] which later appeared on their third EP Life and Death in the Wasteland.[25] Between October 2023 and August 2024, Matlock co-wrote Harpy's "Inside Out",[26] Bambie Thug's "Doomsday Blue",[27] and Bex's "Taste Better".[28]

Personal life

Two days after performing at Scala at their Face Down club night on 5 November 2021,[29] Matlock uploaded to social media a picture of large red marks he had sustained to his back and arms. In his post, he alleged that three security guards had verbally abused Wargasm's female tour manager and had responded to him challenging them by dragging him into a toilet, bashing his head against a toilet seat, and holding his head in a toilet bowl.[30] He also stated that he only escaped after another member of his touring party intervened,[31] that they had been attempting to contact the venue over the weekend regarding the matter, and that said bouncers' continued employment meant that they did not consider the club a safe venue, especially for women. The Security Industry Authority confirmed that they had received a complaint.[30] After investigating, Scala fired two of the bouncers involved,[32] with Wargasm later posting to social media that the third had also been fired.[33] A week and a half after the incident, the venue set out a number of planned security measures for its subsequent performances.[34]

Discography

Main articles: Dead! § Discography, and Wargasm § Discography

Other songs

  • "Summer of Discontent" (2021, as part of Jamie Lenman's Separation Event - Live)[37]

References

  1. ^ "MATLOCK SAM JAMES". www.ascap.com. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  2. ^ Matlock, Sam [@SadBoiAnime] (16 March 2021). "It's my birthday so I'm leaking demos" (Tweet). Retrieved 17 February 2025 – via Twitter.
  3. ^ Moody, Melissa (30 January 2018). "Dead!'s Sam Matlock on being a DIY band and The Golden Age of Not Even Trying". The River. Retrieved 17 February 2025.
  4. ^ a b c Madden, Emma. "Wargasm: Nu-Metal-Loving, Riot-Grrrl-Spirited U.K. Duo Are "Fire and Fire"". Revolver. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  5. ^ Mills, Matt (17 May 2022). "10 new bands featuring the kids of famous rock stars". louder. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  6. ^ "Classic Rock - issue 01/2025". yumpu.com. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  7. ^ "Glen Matlock: 'Leaving the Sex Pistols cost me millions of pounds'". The Telegraph. 14 September 2014. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  8. ^ a b Perry, Sally (11 May 2016). "Isle of Wight band Dead! sign to Infectious Music". Isle of Wight News from OnTheWight. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  9. ^ "Wargasm: Thank you for the Venom - Dork". readdork.com. 27 October 2023. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  10. ^ Wilson, Jasmin (1 June 2016). "Track Review: You're So Cheap // Dead!". The Indiependent. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  11. ^ Moody, Melissa (2 February 2018). "Dead! shows why The Golden Age of Not Even Trying is now -". Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  12. ^ "DEAD". Official Charts. 4 February 2018. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
  13. ^ Murray, Robin (5 June 2018). "Dead! To Split". Clash Magazine Music News, Reviews & Interviews. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  14. ^ "WARGASM: "We stand for chaos"". Kerrang!. 16 February 2022. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  15. ^ "Meet the rising NI heavy metal star who caused 'topless' stir at awards ceremony". BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. 24 July 2022. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  16. ^ "Ten Minutes With Milkie Way | Rokit Vintage Clothing". 20 April 2021. Archived from the original on 20 April 2021. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  17. ^ "WARGASM on creating their spiky brand of electro-rock in AltPress issue #402 cover story". Alternative Press. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
  18. ^ ""Someone said that they were in a Portaloo while we were on stage, and the bass rumbled some excrement out of them." Getting to know Wargasm, the genre-splicing, Fred Durst-approved duo making major waves in modern metal". LouderSound. 16 October 2023. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
  19. ^ Shutler, Ali (27 October 2023). "Wargasm: Thank you for the Venom". Dork. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
  20. ^ "Wargasm". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
  21. ^ "Wargasm - Venom - Dork". readdork.com. 25 October 2023. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  22. ^ "Wargasm unleash new song "Bang Ya Head" featuring Fred Durst: Stream". Consequence. 8 September 2023. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  23. ^ Press, Jack (31 May 2021). "LIVE(STREAM) REVIEW: Jamie Lenman @ Seperation Event". Distorted Sound Magazine. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  24. ^ "CRASHFACE drop new single with WARGASM's Sam Matlock". Kerrang!. 31 July 2024. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  25. ^ Cosgrove, Jo (13 September 2024). "EP REVIEW: Life And Death In The Wasteland - Crashface". Distorted Sound Magazine. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  26. ^ "Harpy unleashes new single that "sounds like Adele's Hello, but..." Kerrang!. 6 October 2023. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  27. ^ "Who is Bambie Thug? The Irish 'goth gremlin' leaving Eurovision fans 'speechless'". The Independent. Archived from the original on 18 July 2024. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  28. ^ "Watch the video for BEX's explosive new single, Taste Better". Kerrang!. 19 August 2024. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  29. ^ Murray, Robin (8 November 2021). "Wargasm Protest Scala Bouncers' "Unnecessary" Use Of Force". Clash Magazine Music News, Reviews & Interviews. Archived from the original on 8 November 2021. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
  30. ^ a b "Wargasm singer's head 'held down backstage toilet by bouncers'". BBC News. 8 November 2021. Archived from the original on 8 November 2021. Retrieved 8 November 2021.
  31. ^ Richards, Will (8 November 2021). "Wargasm accuse Scala bouncers of "unnecessary use of force" against member Sam Matlock". NME. Archived from the original on 4 December 2022. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
  32. ^ "Scala bans bouncers after Wargasm frontman assault claim". BBC News. 9 November 2021. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
  33. ^ Jones, Damian (11 November 2021). "Scala bans third bouncer after Wargasm assault claims". NME. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
  34. ^ Richards, Will (15 November 2021). "Face Down nightclub and Scala set out new security measures following Wargasm incident". NME. Archived from the original on 8 December 2021. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
  35. ^ Smells Like Teen Spirit (Hyper's Seattle Deconstruction), 25 March 2022, retrieved 12 January 2025
  36. ^ MANIAC, 31 July 2024, retrieved 12 January 2025
  37. ^ Separation Event (Live), 10 September 2021, retrieved 12 January 2025
Allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Matlock
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