Wormwood

Psychedelic Blues-Metal? AlternaProg? What now?

Wormwood hails from the north hills of Pittsburgh Pennsylvania and plays what members and fans alike describe as “AlternaProg”, a striking combination of Post-Grunge, Melodic Hard Rock and Modern Progressive. With a very unique sound in somewhat musically stagnant times, the band has drawn fans from many music scenes, as well as the mainstream with its second-to-none song writing and live show. Featuring former members of The Bebop Schmove Project and Arcadia Down, Wormwood is, according to guitarist and co-composer Cameron Ferranti, "trying to take Progressive, Psychedelic and Atmospheric sounds and merge them with more traditional hard rock elements to create an interesting yet accessible sound." Formed as the result of an impromptu jam between Ferranti and the already established Wilson/Devlin rhythm section, Wormwood also draws upon the writing partnership of Ferranti and Rosenhamer that yielded much material in The Bebop Schmove Project. "Sam [Rosenhamer] is writing lyrics now, which I think is really good for his presence since I'm sure he feels them a lot more. That and they are just good songs.” said Ferranti on the subject. "I can't wait to get out and give people the kind of shows I think they deserve", says drummer Stefan Wilson. Indeed, Wormwood did just that on June 2nd 2007 at the Rex Theatre in Pittsburgh. Bringing a large crowd and playing a diverse set of original songs, the band wowed many concert goers with a combination of musicianship, catchy melodies and powerful rhythms.

It was soon after this and another show at the illustrious Club Cafe in Pittsburgh that Wormwood again began writing. Guitarist Cameron Ferranti proposed the genre designation "Psychedelic Blues Metal". "It seems ultra-logical", he says after chuckling and taking a long drink of unsweetened iced tea, "I mean, it says three genres that we definitley touch on." And touch on it they do, whether it be with the SRVaughn-esque guitar passages of "Circumstance" and "N.S.P.S.", the driving crunch of "Letting Go" and "Black Magic" or the atmospheric textural beauty of "Cerberus" and "Consequence", Wormwood transcends these very different, but equally distinguished genres.