Woolworm

Woolworm emerged from Vancouver, British Columbia, as self-appointed architects of the style they dubbed Blanket Rock, a sound that merges hardcore, indie rock, shoegaze, and ambitious pop. Fronted by singer-guitarist Giles Roy, the group issued its scrappy yet stylish opening statement with the 2009 EP no caps. By the time their debut full-length, Believe in Ourselves, surfaced on cassette in 2012, the musicians had sharpened both their instrumental command and compositional craft; after inking a deal with Mint Records, they reached a critical and commercial peak with the 2017 album Deserve to Die.

The band’s history traces to 2008, when Roy, guitarist Alex Pomeroy, and drummer Nick Tolliday first convened shortly after finishing high school. Tolliday soon quarreled with his colleagues and departed, prompting Roy and Pomeroy to recruit drummer Ben Purp and bassist Felicity Herst. The new lineup began performing live and delivered the four-song EP no caps in 2009. A year later the six-song follow-up hearted appeared with Naoyuki Harada, known as Noogz, now handling drums after Purp exited. The three-song single is pain followed in 2011, and in 2012 the cassette-only release of Believe in Ourselves marked their first album.

Herst left shortly afterward, with Heather Black stepping in on bass, while Noogz also departed. When the 2015 EP Everything Seems Obvious arrived, Tolliday had reconciled with Roy and Pomeroy and resumed drumming duties. A cassette single, “Vampirism,” surfaced in 2016, after which Mint Records offered the band a contract. Their first Mint LP, 2017’s Deserve to Die, stood as their most refined and expansive work to that point, drawing warm notices across Canadian outlets and selling out its initial vinyl pressing. That momentum carried into the third album, 2019’s Awe.