Waxpool is Denver’s latest indie-rock band you need to know

Elijah Whelchel is sitting in his home office, which also happens to serve as a mini-music studio for his band, waxpool.

“All the stuff that we put out is all recorded in my apartment,” he says. That includes waxpool’s upcoming debut EP, “i love it here,” which releases on Friday, May 29, and will be celebrated with a show the following evening at the hi-dive.

It’s definitely a big milestone for the nascent indie group, marking its first headlining show at the legendary Denver club that has served as a stepping stone for such groups as Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats. The night’s lineup also includes openers Bad Knees and SEMPAR. As Whelchel puts it, this is “shaping up to be a big night for the South Broadway scene.”

Waxpool itself is relatively new, but it’s already been embraced wholeheartedly. And ‘i love it here’ showcases formidable talent, from the swelling, anthemic sonics of the latest single, “getting stale,” to “pretend,” an absolute standout track that recalls the best indie sleeze of the early aughts.

Whelchel started Waxpool, which he named for a road near an apartment where he lived in northern Virginia, during COVID as a solo project, and then released a handful of singles in 2021. Last summer, he roped in bassist Jack Salyers and drummer Yara Kaadan to make a full band.

“We’re very, very, very DIY,” Whelchel says. “We’re making CDs of our EP for the show that we’re burning in my apartment, as well. If we can do it ourselves, we’re gonna do it ourselves.”

The group had its first show last November at the Skylark — another key watering hole for Denver bands — when “a buddy of ours was helping book a show, and I, like, half-joking, half-serious, was like, ‘Oh if you guys need another opener, let me know,'” Whelchel recalls.

In fact, another opener was needed. “And I’m like, ‘Oh, shoot. So I’ve never performed before,'” he says.

Thus, the recruiting process. Salyers had never even played an instrument beyond Guitar Hero, and Kaadan was a pianist. But somehow, they managed to get the hang of their new instruments before the show. Another friend opened up his garage so the group could practice, and many more friends showed up for the concert. It worked.

“I feel like I just blacked out for the thirty minutes [of performing],” Whelchel says with a laugh.

“It takes a village,” he adds. “We have a lot of people within our network of friends that have been very helpful.”

The show at the hi-dive will be waxpool’s fifth time performing live, but the band has plenty more gigs booked for the summer, including a slot at Blucifer’s First Rodeo, the musician-run festival hitting Broadway in July. And the band has already worked up what’s been a well-played and well-received setlist that Whelchel says will take the audience on a journey. In his years as a solo act, Whelchel had written a lot of original material that his bandmates were able to learn.

“For us, it’s been pretty fun, because now everybody kind of knows what to expect from us,” he says. “But we’ll play one cover, like ‘Fell in Love With a Girl’ by the White Stripes.”

For inspiration, Whelchel looks to groups like Beach Fossils, Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever, and Kurt Vile and Courtney Barnett. “If you listen to each individual part of their songs, it’s very simple,” he says. “But once you put them all together, it works super well. For a lot of our songs…they might not be the most complicated in the world, but they complement each other.”

Ultimately, the members of waxpool play music because they love to — it’s as straightforward as that. “We’re not going to have these crazy long guitar solos and crazy production,” Whelchel says. “I mean, maybe down the road, that might evolve. But right now, we’re trying to just make it kind of simple.”

The earnest quality is refreshing.

“We’re three friends playing music in a garage,” he says. “We’re not trying to be something we’re not.”

Waxpool, 8 p.m. Saturday, May 30, hi-dive, 7 South Broadway. Tickets are $12 in advance, $15 at the door.