Walter Etc. originally formed in 2009 as the trio of Dustin Hayes, Kris Schobert and Jake Lee under the name Walter Mitty And His Makeshift Orchestra, but after a brief hiatus in 2015, Dustin reformed the band under the name Walter Etc, with the idea that members could come and go as they please. Now the original trio have reconvened for a new album, titled When the Band Breaks Up Again and due September 8 via the band’s new label home of SideOneDummy (pre-order). Dustin says:
The three of us got into music together via Green Day and more ‘90s pop-punk and skate punk stuff. Since we were in grade school, the band has been forming and then going separate ways for college and jobs, but we’ve never technically broken up—we’ve just always had these periods where we’re pretty inactive. It’s also gone through a lot of different genres, but this one’s straight pop-punk. So just as the genre of the album is an homage to the old stuff we grew up on, the album title is an homage to the same three guys who’ve known each other since kindergarten returning to our roots by recording this album.
The album was produced by Hop Along/Algernon Cadwallader’s Joe Reinhart, and the first single is the title track, a sweet, simple, catchy song that pays tribute to those ’90s pop punk roots without sounding retro. We’re premiering the song and its video, which puts a comedic twist on the band’s own storyline. Dustin says, “When the band broke up again, all I could do was write a batch of comfort songs that paid homage to the pop punk we grew up on. I wanted this video to feel like MTV, this song to feel like skateboarding for the first time, and the album to be a light-hearted battle cry for keeping your dream alive. I think we got pretty close…” Check it out below.
Tracklist
When The Band Breaks Up Again
Small Town Bro
Don’t Stop Losing
GTFO Thoreau
Sylvie’s a Mess
Victims of Integrity
Drown Enough
Manic Pixie Misanthrope
Happy To Be Here
Something To Someone Somewhere