Wolfmother

Embracing dense fuzz guitars, raw psychedelic drive, and pounding rhythms, Wolfmother emerged as 21st-century rock revivalists who fused Black Sabbath’s classic sludge with the White Stripes’ retro-garage approach. Fronted by guitarist and vocalist Andrew Stockdale, the Sydney power trio burst onto the scene in 2006 with a self-titled debut that spawned worldwide hits “Woman” and “Joker & the Thief.” Despite later lineup shifts that left Stockdale as the only original member, follow-up releases Cosmic Egg (2009) and New Crown (2014) sustained a loyal audience drawn to their riff-heavy style.

Stockdale assembled the band alongside drummer Myles Heskett, who recruited bassist and keyboardist Chris Ross. After several years of preparation, their first live show in April 2004 triggered rapid progress; four months later they signed with Modular Records and recorded a self-titled EP at Detroit’s Ghetto Studios under Jim Diamond, who had previously worked with the White Stripes. The EP reached the Australian singles chart, prompting further touring and a move to Universal Records. The group then traveled to Los Angeles to record their full-length debut with producer David Sardy. Released in Australia that October, Wolfmother became a major success there and earned quintuple-platinum certification domestically, while subsequent international rollouts in early 2006 performed strongly on the strength of singles “White Unicorn,” “Woman,” and “Joker & the Thief,” plus numerous film, television, and video-game placements and extensive festival touring.

Intense promotion soon exposed internal tensions, and in August 2008 Universal confirmed the exits of Heskett and Ross. Stockdale expanded Wolfmother into a quartet by adding guitarist Aidan Nemeth, bassist and keyboardist Ian Peres, and drummer Dave Atkins; the new configuration debuted in early 2009 under the temporary name White Feather. Recording for a second album proceeded, yielding Cosmic Egg, which arrived in fall 2009 and debuted at number three in Australia and number sixteen in the United States, though it did not replicate the debut’s impact. The band toured the record into 2011, with Will Rockwell-Scott replacing Atkins on drums in 2010. Work on a third album followed amid further instability: Nemeth and Rockwell-Scott departed in 2012 and were succeeded by guitarist Vin Steele and drummer Hamish Rosser, while keyboardist Elliott Hammond also joined during sessions. Ultimately Stockdale shelved the Wolfmother name and issued the material as the solo album Keep Moving in summer 2013; it reached number thirty-two in Australia. By year’s end Stockdale revived Wolfmother—minus Hammond—and shifted Steele to drums, restoring the trio format that surprise-released New Crown in spring 2014. A deluxe two-disc reissue of the debut appeared the following year to mark the band’s tenth anniversary.

Lead single “Victorious” surfaced in November, followed by “Gypsy Caravan” in January 2016. The album Victorious arrived in February, recorded in Hollywood and produced by Brendan O’Brien. The credited lineup featured Stockdale on guitars, basses, and vocals, Peres on keyboards, and drummers Josh Freese and Joey Waronker.