Will Wood has been said to have appeared out of nowhere, stumbling out of a hallucinogenic haze in 2015. He immediately began attracting attention and controversy with his eccentric and difficult-to-pin-down public persona and provocative performance art. Today, we’re premiering an in-studio video for "Marsha, Thankk You…" from The Normal Album, released in July. Watch it below!
Will, thanks for sharing your studio video for "Marsha, Thankk You for the Dialectics, but I Need You to Leave" with us! It's a catchy track that tackles a difficult conversation - addressing how mental health is discussed in our society. What's your message with the song?
I guess I’m trying to express the way I’ve grappled with the philosophical implications of trying to manipulate one’s own mind with chemicals for reasons other than fun or consciousness expansion, and where I belong in the debate. There are voices coming from both directions, shouting quite loudly. One of them saying “you’re not sick, get a hold of yourself you spoiled brat.”
Another one of them saying “you’re broken, none of it is your fault or responsibility, and your only hope is spending the rest of your inherently sick existence worshiping the chemical technology the heavens sent down to us through AstraZeneca, and fanatically identifying with pop psychology platitudes.”
Our increasingly-polarized culture, high on its opinions and identities and desperate enough for its social media dopamine fix to give itself over to extreme nonsense denialism and rationalization, is thinking in black and white - suffering from ideological Borderline Personality Disorder.
We don’t want discourse DBT, we want to feel better - and I don’t blame us. But the conversation happening between those making the supposed effort to de-stigmatize mental illness, and those trying in vain to give an unwelcome and ignorant perspective on that effort because of special snowflakes or whatever — it’s getting us nowhere. It’s a game of tug of war with the teams a mile apart and no objective judge. We don’t need to meet in the middle, we need to give up the game. Because the truth is always more complicated than what comes to mind when you’re upset with your parents or your children for their apparent moral failures.
It comes off your latest album The Normal Album, released in July. How has fan response been to the new record?
The consensus seems to be that it’s my best effort so far - but it’s got just the right amount of controversy and just the right amount of rejection. It’s got little streaks of “this is kind of problematic” and “I can’t believe he said that” or “this song gave me a panic attack, I wish they’d go back to how they used to sound.” I don’t go out of my way to offend or scare people, but I do like to know I’m changing enough to get closer to the heart of my overarching statement, and closer to the people I’m really trying to connect with, comfort, and inspire.
It’s a fun little naughty feeling, because if you’re being truly honest about what’s going on inside your head, there will always be a significant portion of people who reject you as a human being entirely. That’s what the half inch of material between the brain and the scalp is for, to keep some stuff inside and some stuff out - and I’ve cracked my head open. It’s a thrill, and an honor.
Tell us about the studio session - it looked like a really neat set-up, with some friends and fans in attendance. Was this video part of a full set? Can we expect additional to be shared?
Thanks. It was a really unique experience for me and the band - to just sit down and play and let the music do the talking in an intimate setting with some of our biggest and most invested fans. That being said there was a lot of chaos behind the scenes - it’s a wonder it came together at all, honestly. There will be more, yes. Some will be available exclusively to members of my Patreon, which you can find at Patreon.com/therealwillwood.
Facebook | Instagram | Patreon | Spotify | Youtube | Website