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Music
Drake Magazine | Fall 2013
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The Digital Wild finds a platform to share its forward-thinking ideas through activism and an indie-hip-hop sound. WORDS Kayli Kunkel PHOTOS Courtesy of The Digital Wild
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hen Chantell Moody left behind her folk band in Des Moines and trekked south to Austin, Texas, her music scene wasn’t the only thing that changed. In this city of activism and innovation, the Live Music Capital of the World, Moody’s musical experiment—a sound far from folk—was born. “Even though Des Moines is a progressive city, things hit Austin several years before Des Moines,” Moody says. “It’s been really cool, because people are very aware of issues here and are also very progressive. You’ll drive around and see people with solar panels, eco-friendly cars, organic
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grocery stores, and farmers markets. It’s opened my eyes to a lot of things.” Under the stage glow of Austin’s Beauty Ballroom, The Digital Wild formed in a blend of fortune and fate. Moody and her then-boyfriend, Chelsea Seth Woodward, crossed paths with their future band mates: Pax, an emcee, and Wisdom, a hip-hop drummer. Woodward’s close friend Eddie Hudson soon came into the project as bass player. But it was Moody, the group’s vocal powerhouse, who lit the finalizing flame under The Digital Wild. “Chantell was more amped about starting a band,” says Woodward,
former frontman of the indie-rock group Paper Mache. “I wouldn’t say I was burnt on it, but I was taking a break to find a new style, find a new outlet. I was done pursuing music for a bit, but she knew all along that she was getting a band together. She was tricking me slowly.” The group’s mixture of soul, indie-rock, and hip-hop may sound like a clashing formula, but The Digital Wild melds genres into a seamless puzzle. Members call this spin “trip-hop,” “indie hip-hop,” and “conscious soul,” complete with alluring beats and vocals. “We’ve got a couple songs that have this OG-vintage, hip-hop sound with our own twist,” Woodward says. “We have a couple songs where Chantell sounds more like Ella Fitzgerald in the Nat King Cole era.” By adding elements of activism and humanity to their lyrics, the group reimagines hip-hop—a genre often classified by exclusivity and gender violence. “I’ve always really been more about lyrics and about vibes,” Woodward says. “With this band, it’s a better platform to express what I had wanted to do the whole time: a little more soul.” Woodward says the overarching message is broader than any one topic. It’s an invitation to think forward— to care about the environment and the carbon footprint, to eat non-GMO, to buy local. It’s about breaking old notions of right and wrong. “You can still have game and be a badass in life, and treat women well and be monogamous,” Woodward says. “In many places, you’re just a complaining hippie if you speak out. You become just a troublemaker trying to annoy everyone else. Here, there’s a more of a positive approach.” Woodward
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appreciates Austin’s culture as one of collaboration, not competition. After touring the West Coast with Paper Mache, Woodward says he doesn’t miss the dog-eat-dog music world of cities like Los Angeles and Seattle. On the album, Moody, a magnetic blend of sweetness and tenacity, speaks out about self-image and anti-war movements. “War creates more war; bloodshed creates more bloodshed,” Moody says. “Leaders have been doing that since the beginning of time, and we obviously need to rethink how we want to reform things. For me, this album has been the first time I’ve had a platform to talk about issues like this.” The Digital Wild meets open arms at local shows, and its mature sound and insightful lyrics are making waves. Sneak preview tracks from the band’s upcoming debut album are already solid and soaked with soul. And though the album is saturated with ethics, the band won’t soapbox the causes they care about. “Our attitude was to be a little ambiguous—we don’t want to think for people,” Woodward says. “We want to give them a platform to have a voice.”
The Digital Wild’s debut album, “Into The Digital Wild,” is set to drop later this winter. Download two preview tracks at soundcloud.com/thedigitalwild. Stay up to date on the album’s release at TheDigitalWild.org.