The Woggles

“For two decades, The Woggles have marched forth from Georgia like Sherman in reverse, leveling nightclubs with their hip-shaking, windshield-steaming garage rock fusillade” (Austin Chronicle). From songs that shake the rafters to shows that make for “a dance party rave-up that could melt Dick Clark’s face off” (Village Voice), the Woggles are a four-man delivery system for 200-proof, nitro-fueled rock’n’roll. As their die-hard fans around the world know, music fads and fashions may come and go, but the Woggles share a vision and blaze a trail with the same insanity as the true wildman originators of three-chord mayhem.

Combine a whole lot of 60’s rock’n’roll with a fist-full of soul, a hip flask of rhythm & blues and a splash of surf and you’ll have the exciting sound of the Woggles. Signing with Little Steven Van Zandt’s Wicked Cool Records in 2006, their latest effort for the label is 2013’s The Big Beat. The title is a nod to famed DJ Alan Freed's short lived weekly prime time TV rock’n’roll show that predated American Bandstand. Said Freed, "Rock and Roll is a river of music that encompasses elements of rhythm & blues, jazz, rag time, cowboy songs, country songs, and folk songs. All have contributed to the "Big Beat."

For the album the Woggles forged twelve new tributaries to the raging river of rock and recorded them at Transduction Studio in Athens, GA. The sessions were engineered by Dave Barbe, known for his work with the Drive By Truckers. The legendary Rodney Mills mixed and mastered. He's worked with artists as varied as James Brown and the Meters, to the Atlanta Rhythm Section and Lynyrd Skynyrd, to the Cruzados and Pylon.

Other Woggles’ releases include 2009’s Tempo Tantrum, ranked by Spin magazine among the “Best of the Year.” and called “The soundtrack for the best biker flick you’ve never seen.” 2007 saw the release of Rock And Roll Backlash containing “It’s Not About What I Want (It’s What You Got).” The song was voted the first ever “Coolest Song of the Year” by listeners of SiriusXM’s Underground Garage Channel.

The Woggles’ live shows are the stuff of rock’n’roll legend. The four members of the band conjure up a sound that bypasses the brain and goes straight for the hip-bone. The Woggles’ wailing, tambourine flailing leader “The Professor” Mighty Manfred casts the mojo like electricity from his fingertips. He can also be found spinning vintage vinyl and sharing rock’n’roll ephemera on his acclaimed satellite radio show for SiriusXM Channel 21. Before answering the Woggles’ call, Guitar-slinger Flesh Hammer mangled strings with 1980’s faves Guadalcanal Diary. Since the Woggles’ first seven-inch in 1990, Mr. Hammer has also been in the producer’s seat for most of the group’s releases.

Pouring on the soul coal and making sure that Woggles’ fans keep their chiropractors busy, the group’s ferocious rhythm section features Alabama catfish farmer Dan Elektro on drums and the unflappable Buzz Hagstrom on bass. Mr. Elektro was already paying his dues at the age of ten when he sat behind the skins for his father’s band, the Country Gentlemen. Mr. Hagstrom is native to Folkestone England, and his impeccable continental sense of style comes with a license to kill. On occasion The Woggles’ celebrated rhythm section has also recorded and toured as members of Medway England’s legendary Graham Day & the Gaolers.

The Woggles have sired an extensive discography that encompasses a wide variety of CD & vinyl releases spreading over various international labels. They have appeared in several videos and independent films and have also contributed to numerous compilations, tribute albums, and film soundtracks. They have shared stages with such legends as Iggy & the Stooges, the Zombies, the Sonics, the New York Dolls, Johnny Cash, the Troggs, Dick Dale, Bo Diddley, Nancy Sinatra, the Pretty Things, and Big Star as well as artists such as the Strokes, the Raveonettes, Beck, Holly Golightly, Guitar Wolf and countless others.

“Go see a Woggles show. It will change your life” (Meredith Ochs, NPR All Songs Considered).