Win Tickets to say Sayonara to Josh from The ILL Itches and Elise from YUM this Weekend at The Loving Touch!

From the first time we saw The ILL Itches we were fans, we loved their sound and their live show.  We have seen them play more times than we can count and to be honest, it still isn't enough. We were honored to have them play last year's anniversary show. They just released a new EP and we loved that, we planned to continue to follow the band for years to come.

That's when we found out that Joshua Woodcock was moving out of country and taking Elise from YUM with him. I mean we get it, life has to change and when opportunity knocks you have to answer the door. But, this could mean that we may never get to see bands that we truly enjoy play again. We decided instead of speculating to go right to the source and find out all of the details about the big move and the future of both bands.

We had a chance to talk to Josh Woodcock form The ILL Itches and find out more about the move. Check out what he had to say and head up to The LT this weekend to say your goodbyes, or at least your goodbyes for now. 


HID- Why are you moving to Japan?
Joshua Woodcock- "I'm moving to Japan to work as an associate producer at a well know entertainment company. They are NYC-based, but I will be working at their Tokyo office. I just finished law school and was lucky to get into a field that I was interested in."

HID- Will this be the end of The ILL Itches?
Joshua Woodcock- "No! We have a few releases geared up for this year. A friend of ours will be covering live shows for me while I'm gone."

HID- What will you be working on next musically, if anything?
Joshua Woodcock- "While I'm in Japan, I hope to play with some of my old band mates who I played with before in Tokyo. You can rent rehearsal studios in Japan, and we used to do that on nights off and just played music for fun. Elise and I both enjoy playing music, so we'll probably work on some stuff together when we both get our footing after the move."

HID- What is your favorite ILL Itches memory?
Joshua Woodcock- "That question is really difficult. Opening for the Buzzcocks and Dead Kennedys were both great highlights... the first time we got test pressings in of our record and listened to them is another. My favorite memory was probably playing with Matt (Livengood) and those unspoken looks and nods during shows of, 'ok, this is pretty fun.'"

HID- Do you have anything special planned for the last show?
Joshua Woodcock- "Nothing really special, I'm just going to go and have fun and spend some time with friends and family who can make it out. We'll be leaving early the next morning, so it'll be the last time we have the chance to see everybody for a bit."

HID- Is this the end of YUM?
Joshua Woodcock- "I'm sure it's not the end for YUM. Elise pours herself into those songs, and I'm sure with the move, she'll have even more inspiration for new songs. Whether she carries the name over in Japan with those songs, or is involved in something entirely different, she'll be playing music."

HID- Why are you doing this to us?
Joshua Woodcock- "HAHA I don't know, I'm sorry. I love the city and everyone out here and I will be back on business quite a bit, so I hope I can make some trips into town to see everyone. But it's a great opportunity, and in all honesty, I miss Tokyo a bit."

HID- What will you miss most about Detroit?
Joshua Woodcock- "So many things! My friends and family, for sure. I'll miss playing all the time and in Detroit venues. I'll miss going out to shows and seeing people and hearing about their music projects, and probably the biggest thing I'll miss about the city itself is going to see a show of a band I've never seen or heard of before...you know, that type of band where you hear them come on and you stop whatever conversation you're in and get up close to watch their set. I'll miss that. A city's personality is largely made up of the people who inhabit it, and Detroit has such a wide-range of talented people that I'll miss having conversations with and learning new things from."

HID- What are you most looking forward to in Japan?
Joshua Woodcock- "I'm looking forward to seeing some of my old friends (some who I haven't seen since I was last there 4 years ago), and checking out cool parts of Tokyo with Elise. Most of all, I feel really energized and I'm looking forward to getting to work."


Catch The ILL Itches this Saturday, January 31st at The Loving Touch alongside YUM, Citizen Smile, Le Voyage, and Nigel & The Dropout. It's only $5 to get in the door and it is your last chance to say goodbye to Josh and Elise, as he mentioned, they will be leaving the next day. We also have three pairs of tickets to give away to our readers. If you would like to go to the show, please email your full name with the subject line Farewell to hipindetroit@gmail.com.

We wish you both nothing but happiness and success, but we have to admit that we are sad to see you go!

~S