BAYWAY: NEW JERSEY

Bayway’s “The Newport Sessions” release from April of this year hit us like a ton of bricks bringing back vivid memories of 90’s era unapologetic East Coat Hardcore. They have been around for less than a year, have played only a few shows to date and are a perfect candidate to be up next on In Effect’s Fresh Blood page. Check out what their frontman Jayway had to say in this July 2023 interview. Lead photo by: Sean P. 

IE: For people who have never heard Bayway before what should they expect style/sound wise when they pop on “The Newport Sessions”?

Jayway: New Jersey. They should expect to hear New Jersey Hardcore. The way it was done from the beginning… just rugged, unapologetic, and raw! We are heavily influenced by all the greats that came out of the 90’s scene. Largely influenced by hip-hop and the place we came up in.

IE: What were some motivational factors behind starting Bayway?

Jayway: We were working together for the first time in many years. As we started writing songs together for a different project we were leaning towards a specific sound. In my opinion that sound didn’t suit us. We were trying to make music for someone else other than ourselves. At a certain point we wrote an entire EP that was later trashed because it didn’t represent us and our sound. As we got more comfortable writing together Bayway was born. The thought process behind it was to no longer be tied up in what people want us to do or what we think we should do but just to make the music we wanted to hear.

IE: “God Forgive Me” is probably the "hit" track on the new recording and features Stikman from Fury Of V on guest vocals. Can you talk about this track and how it got molded into what it became?

Jayway: First off Stikman is a fucking legend. Everybody knows who that dude is. He was at our first show so I approached him to thank him for paving the way. We started bullshitting and he told me he liked what he saw in the band. Shortly after that as we were writing for the new tape I asked him if he would do a feature for us. We exchanged lyrics for the song and without even discussing it we were already on the same page. I had him come out to the studio because I wanted to be able to record his vocals myself. He came through and absolutely killed it. Dude is incredibly professional. He knew how he wanted it to sound and had everything mapped out ahead of time. It’s one of my favorite songs we have for obvious reasons but beyond that the ability to play it live and feed off his energy on stage has been the best part. 

BAYWAY: NORTH ARLINGTON, NJ.  FEBRUARY 19, 2023. PHOTO BY: WILLIAM MARKS PHOTO

IE: “Cease II Exist” finishes up “The Newport Sessions” and sees you really flex with the hip-hop influenced vocals in a pretty unique way for a hardcore band. Back in the 90's this style was more prevalent in hardcore although it wasn't always successful but it's clear Bayway is on to something here. Have you done any other music projects in the past involving hip-hop and is this style something we can expect to hear more of on future Bayway releases?

Jayway: I can tell you now you will 100% be hearing more of this style on future releases. The rap part on Bayway and “Cease II Exist” have become my favorite parts to sing live. There are a few on our next release and as we are currently writing the follow up there are more on that as well. I have always had a love for hip-hop. It’s the music I grew up on. Before I knew what hardcore or metal were I was exclusively listening to hip-hop. There were a few past projects that were influenced by it but nothing like Bayway.

IE: How was the name Bayway chosen?

Jayway: Bayway was a name suggested by our guitarist Chris. We were talking on the phone and he said something like “What about that Bayway” and it just stuck. It makes sense in so many ways because it's the name of the section of Elizabeth where I’m from and is also the connection between Linden, where Chris and Dave are from and Elizabeth.

IE: Craziest thing you have ever witnessed at a hardcore show?

Jayway: We don’t talk about that.

IE: Name something the hardcore scene needs more of right now....

Jayway: Venues.

IE: What's next for Bayway? Shows? Merch? Next drop? 

Jayway: Bayway is about to play with Madball and Merauder which is a huge show for us and for Jersey. We have an exclusive jersey for the show that I think people are gonna want to get their hands on. We have an upcoming release we are working on with DAZE and RTF and before the end of the year we will finish writing a new EP. Thanks for the interview. We truly appreciate your time and everything you do for the scene.

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT BAYWAY ON INSTAGRAM AND THROUGH THIS LINKTREE LINK