First, a word or two about the ukulele: it has a reputation. Show-it-off-at-the-beach or throw-some-cover-songs-at-a-party-and-hope-somebody-takes-interest or buy-some-to-make-you-want-to-buy-a-car commercial mode. And, of course, Winchester 7 & the Runners decided to get into all that by plugging one in and starting an indie rock band. Somehow, though, it works.
On No Worse For Wear, the electric tenor ukulele is not a novelty to tickle your fancy. It is the headliner, riffing its melodies throughout a musical brew inspired by the sounds of 60s rock, surf, garage, old time pop and new indie rock. It is as familiar as it is odd, conjuring up an aura of strangeness and familiarity that doesn’t require the guitar.
There is more afoot for the Atlanta-based band than the idea of convincing a weird instrument can be powerful. Throughout the EP, Winchester 7 & the Runners tackle the new challenges of technology and the internet and how to navigate the world when being a human is more complicated than ever before. Fortunately, they tackle it without every song feeling like a TED talk with a groove.
The World From My Bed asks: Are we able to handle the pressures of the endless amount of information vying for our consciousness? The proposition that we’re better off not to spend so much of our free time glued to our screens is nothing new. I think I first heard someone say that same thing right after she posted about her digital detox to Instagram. However, the melodies of the song push the topic across in a friendly, not quite preachy way.
‘Waitin’ Here for You’ looks at how music still brings us together in a changing technological world. It’s a colossal topic to try to cover off on a pop song, but the band keeps the attention on people. For all the speculation over what the machines will do next, people still crave art to stir their emotions. The machinery can change; the craving can’t.
Lastly, “I’m Goin’ Down” focuses on those who pick us up after our self-esteem takes a hit. An entry that’s conceptually simple, but even out of context, not every song has to have a painful point. Sometimes, you just need to hear that life doesn’t end when you have a bad day.
“Ballad of the Bishop of Eastwood” is another example of a song that is more driven by narrative than a hook. It’s as if Eastwood has taken the feel of an ancient folk story and presented it in modern indie rock – influenced, yet capable of giving us its own unique identity. There is no need to draw attention to the song’s impressiveness – just keep the story coming.
Guy Page of Coach Party contributed drums and mixing. Airinna Namara features on “The World From My Bed,” while Jenny Conlee of The Decemberists contributed keys to “The Way You Moved.” These contributions brighten the proceedings without allowing the recordings to become collections of one-off personalities.
Winchester 7 & the Runners have branched further out from your average band, with videos, visualizers, podcasts, livestreams and a digital archive, Continuum Relay. It’s quite an undertaking of a multimedia project, but all that jazz would be meaningless if the tracks weren’t any good.
Luckily, though, No Worse For Wear finds a firm musical identity. The mix of nostalgic and modern touches on the EP keeps things from feeling like they’re firmly rooted in the past or overly enamored with the future.
Now, a band that reinvents indie rock should not have to make its case here and, in this case, the band doesn’t really have to. But to build a full-throttle rock band around a ukulele is a feat and one the Winchester 7 & the Runners pull off with actual purpose; it’s not for the novelty.
Follow Winchester 7 & the Runners
About the Author
A tenured media critic known working as a ghost writer, freelance critic for various publications around the world, the former lead writer of review blogspace Atop The Treehouse and content creator for Manila Bulletin.
