History of Coos Control

Coos Control’s transcendent spurtles were first heard in the fall of 2016 in that region where moss and sand cavort, the Oregon Coast. The band was formed by Jed Wyman (formerly with Grim Reefer, Non Drowsy, The Imbroglios, and El Indio) and Alex Hinkle (formerly with The Joint Chiefs and Infectious Waste). The band’s first gig occurred in the spring of 2017 in the Black Box at Southwestern Oregon Community College. Notable at the gig was a euphonium played by legendary Aaron Hull, a runaway drum, and a copious number of bananas duct-taped to the walls. Then Alex left and baby seals cried and turtles lamented. The band continued on, charging harder with each splash of a certain wave on a special rock in a specific cove. Which wave, which rock, and which cove, the band has no clue, but they are seeking them out and when they find them, the discovery should affect strongly this thing we love and cherish called Rock and Roll.

The line up for the first album, Snorkels and Portals, released in the fall of 2019, consisted of Jed Wyman (guitar and gurgles), Max Young (bass), and Tom Nakamura (drums). Playing guitar on half of the album’s songs was Scott Clough who departed midway through the recording to visit different planetary quadrants. Notable Rock journalist Rick Redeckless called Snorkles and Portals “a burlap sack filled with more genuine Psych-Rock and heavy grooves than there are beans in a bean can—the larger cans.” The trio of Wyman, Young, and Nakamura unfurled cascades of radness at numerous gigs, but their most memorable performance is generally considered to be their epic show at Time Bomb in the band’s town of origin, Coos Bay, where they rocked so hard that any ellipsis in the immediate vicinity grew to the length of five dots as opposed to three. Coos Control is believed to be the only Rock band to ever have this effect on ellipses. 

Following the departure of Young and Nakamura a year of directionless woe followed as numerous people filtered through the band, none of whom were able to embrace the grooves with any real commitment.

Then Alex Hinkle, now in the guise of Xela Bass Wizard, returned to the fold and the glow began to again take hold. Enter Alissa Rocktopus McCord, and the band was on its way to unadulterated majonka. Rockto’s drumming and vocals helped coat the band in a sticky sheen of inspired nuance. The band’s second album, Let us Ram Our Rock Into You, recorded with this line-up in 2024, so impressed Rick Redeckless he gave it this simple seven-word review: “It is the ug of the sun.” 

Then came Kalee Pipewrench Walter. For the first time since Coos Control’s first gig, brass, courtesy of Pipewrench’s trombone, graced the band’s sound. But it is more than brass as Pipewrench also works the keys with inspired hands, is an unflappable tambourine basher, and possesses mesmerizing pipes. The band, bolstered by a slew of epiphanies pertaining to artichokes and song-writing, returned to the studio to record its third album, Rocktopus Epiphanies. This album, released in the summer of 2025, Rick Redeckless calls “the ultimate effort in the realm of artichokean Rock,” stating, “I strongly recommend people post sticky notes of these songs on the inside of their skulls.”

Unfortunately, in January 2026, Alyssa “Rocktopus” McCord moved on from the band. With less than two months to prepare for Febrockuary Fest, Coos Control was able to wrangle Neveah “Fiddlehead” Dewitt as the band’s new drummer. Along with Nevaeh came Kolby “Burt” Stradley on guitar, and Alannah “Torreya” Gee on congas. With this new six member line-up, Coos Control was able to provide a trance-inducing performance as headliners at the third annual Febrockuary Fest.

All three of the bands albums were recorded by Tony Esperance at Bay Vu Studios in North Bend, Oregon. The band’s fourth album, Mind Turtle, is currently being pressed at Morphius Records in Baltimore, Maryland. The band returns to Bay Vu Studios later this month to begin recording its fifth album, They That Do Play It. 

Coos Control albums, available only on vinyl, can be found in record stores in thirty-eight states and in Spain, Italy, and Ireland.

Coos Control is:

Jed Mwalimu Wyman: guitar and gurgles

Alex Xela Bass Wizard Hinkle: bass

Kalee Pipewrench Walter: Trombone, keyboards, vocals, tambourine, harmonica

Nevaeh Fiddlehead Dewitt: drums and vocals

Alannah Torreya Gee: congas, percussion

Kolby Burt Stradley: guitar