WEBVTT 00:00:24.660 --> 00:00:28.460 Picture this. You get a call. Bonnaroo wants 00:00:28.460 --> 00:00:31.000 you. You're about to play one of the biggest 00:00:31.000 --> 00:00:34.560 festivals in the country. There's one problem. 00:00:35.479 --> 00:00:38.799 You have exactly three original songs. What do 00:00:38.799 --> 00:00:43.320 you do? Panic? Decline? Call your mom? If you're 00:00:43.320 --> 00:00:46.880 Winya from Georgetown and Pawleys Island, South 00:00:46.880 --> 00:00:50.500 Carolina, you lock yourself in a warehouse, crash 00:00:50.500 --> 00:00:54.520 on couches, and write an entire album. in six 00:00:54.520 --> 00:00:57.859 weeks. Welcome to Shecky's Jam Bands. I'm your 00:00:57.859 --> 00:01:00.979 host, and today we're diving into a story of 00:01:00.979 --> 00:01:03.740 a band that went from beach town dreamers to 00:01:03.740 --> 00:01:06.680 touring with some of the biggest names in indie 00:01:06.680 --> 00:01:09.659 rock. And they did it with the kind of hustle 00:01:09.659 --> 00:01:12.099 that would make your high school guidance counselor 00:01:12.099 --> 00:01:16.980 weep tears of joy. All right, let's talk geography 00:01:16.980 --> 00:01:22.019 for a second. Wenya Bay, ever heard of it? If 00:01:22.019 --> 00:01:24.790 you haven't, You're not alone. Unless you're 00:01:24.790 --> 00:01:28.129 from South Carolina Lowcountry. In which case, 00:01:28.689 --> 00:01:31.829 welcome to the show, cousin. Winyah Bay is a 00:01:31.829 --> 00:01:35.849 historic waterway where five rivers converge. 00:01:36.370 --> 00:01:41.849 The Black, the Pee Dee, the Waccamaw, the Samet, 00:01:42.129 --> 00:01:45.909 and the Little Pee Dee. And yes, I did say Pee 00:01:45.909 --> 00:01:50.049 Dee twice on a podcast about jam bands. We're 00:01:50.049 --> 00:01:53.730 classy here. But here's the beautiful part all 00:01:53.730 --> 00:01:57.849 five members of this band Thomas Rowland on vocals 00:01:57.849 --> 00:02:03.129 Steve Steve O Russell on bass Luke Butters Gordon 00:02:03.129 --> 00:02:07.689 on lead guitar Jake on drums and Rob on keys 00:02:07.689 --> 00:02:11.610 They all grew up around this bay their music 00:02:11.610 --> 00:02:14.750 reflects those five rivers converging Which is 00:02:14.750 --> 00:02:17.949 a poetic way of saying they bring different influences 00:02:17.949 --> 00:02:21.069 together and somehow make it work without turning 00:02:21.069 --> 00:02:25.889 it into sonic mud. The band made themselves, 00:02:26.009 --> 00:02:30.990 after their home, simple, honest, way better 00:02:30.990 --> 00:02:34.449 than calling themselves the Wet Guitars, or something 00:02:34.449 --> 00:02:37.610 equally terrible that I would have suggested. 00:02:37.930 --> 00:02:41.530 Now, before they became Wynia the band, these 00:02:41.530 --> 00:02:46.949 guys had actual jobs. I know, shocking. Steven 00:02:46.949 --> 00:02:50.060 was working in finance in Charlotte, living that 00:02:50.060 --> 00:02:53.439 corporate life. Meanwhile, Luke, nicknamed Butters 00:02:53.439 --> 00:02:56.740 by a group of Australians who saw his bleached 00:02:56.740 --> 00:03:01.159 hair and southern drawl, was a professional surfer. 00:03:01.500 --> 00:03:04.659 Yes, a professional surfer. This man was getting 00:03:04.659 --> 00:03:07.759 paid to stand on water while the rest of us struggled 00:03:07.759 --> 00:03:12.840 to stand on dry land after two beers. But music 00:03:12.840 --> 00:03:16.900 kept calling. And when Thomas spearheaded the 00:03:16.900 --> 00:03:19.919 move to Nashville, These guys knew it was time 00:03:19.919 --> 00:03:23.520 to either commit or forever wander. What if? 00:03:24.139 --> 00:03:29.599 Enter Bonnaroo 2024. They got the call, the opportunity 00:03:29.599 --> 00:03:33.479 of a lifetime, and they had three songs. Not 00:03:33.479 --> 00:03:39.139 three albums, not three EPs, three songs. So, 00:03:39.280 --> 00:03:41.599 what did they do? They locked themselves in a 00:03:41.599 --> 00:03:44.500 warehouse in Columbia, South Carolina, crashing 00:03:44.500 --> 00:03:47.550 on couches, writing and recording enough material 00:03:47.550 --> 00:03:51.289 to fill an entire set in just a month and a half. 00:03:51.909 --> 00:03:54.889 That music became the foundation of their debut 00:03:54.889 --> 00:03:59.590 album, Lot To Learn. And let me tell you, that 00:03:59.590 --> 00:04:03.930 album title, not ironic, they learned a lot fast. 00:04:04.889 --> 00:04:08.909 Okay, time for the meat and potatoes. Or, if 00:04:08.909 --> 00:04:12.430 you're vegan, the, I don't know, chickpeas and 00:04:12.430 --> 00:04:16.000 sweet potatoes. Whatever. Point is, Let's talk 00:04:16.000 --> 00:04:18.800 about which songs you need to hear if you are 00:04:18.800 --> 00:04:22.899 new to Wynia. First up, Feel It All Again. This 00:04:22.899 --> 00:04:25.579 is their debut single and it's become a crowd 00:04:25.579 --> 00:04:29.399 favorite, proving their songs resonate far beyond 00:04:29.399 --> 00:04:32.959 South Carolina. When they play this live, and 00:04:32.959 --> 00:04:36.959 I mean live, in those sweaty, intimate venues 00:04:36.959 --> 00:04:39.839 where you can see the whites of the drummer's 00:04:39.839 --> 00:04:43.920 eyes, this song transforms. It's got that nostalgic, 00:04:44.500 --> 00:04:47.149 ache, that makes you think about your hometown 00:04:47.149 --> 00:04:51.110 even if you've never left it. The guitars build, 00:04:51.509 --> 00:04:54.910 the vocals soar, and by the end everyone in the 00:04:54.910 --> 00:04:57.970 room is either singing along or crying into the 00:04:57.970 --> 00:05:00.189 overpriced craft beer. Why should you listen 00:05:00.189 --> 00:05:02.930 to this? Because it's the perfect entry point. 00:05:03.370 --> 00:05:07.449 It's got hooks for days, the production is clean 00:05:07.449 --> 00:05:10.910 but not sterile, and it shows you exactly what 00:05:10.910 --> 00:05:14.389 the band does well. introspective storytelling 00:05:14.389 --> 00:05:17.569 with melodies that burrow into your brain and 00:05:17.569 --> 00:05:21.910 refuse to leave. The second song you should listen 00:05:21.910 --> 00:05:25.889 to, Lot To Learn. Lot To Learn embodies their 00:05:25.889 --> 00:05:29.389 journey written during those warehouse songwriting 00:05:29.389 --> 00:05:32.370 sessions when they were literally learning how 00:05:32.370 --> 00:05:35.589 to become a band under pressure. This one's got 00:05:35.589 --> 00:05:38.790 more jam potential. The live versions stretch 00:05:38.790 --> 00:05:41.689 out, especially in the guitar work. Butters lets 00:05:41.689 --> 00:05:45.019 loose. and you can hear the influence of all 00:05:45.019 --> 00:05:49.279 that time he spent surfing. There's a flow to 00:05:49.279 --> 00:05:51.959 his solos that feels less like shredding and 00:05:51.959 --> 00:05:56.060 more like, well, riding waves. Concert attendees 00:05:56.060 --> 00:06:00.019 have been known to request this one specifically, 00:06:00.019 --> 00:06:03.600 and when they do, the band delivers. It's raw, 00:06:03.779 --> 00:06:06.319 it's honest, and it's the kind of song that makes 00:06:06.319 --> 00:06:09.620 you want to roll down the windows and drive until 00:06:09.620 --> 00:06:12.439 you hit water. Let me hit you with some facts 00:06:12.439 --> 00:06:16.220 that'll make you either inspired or deeply jealous. 00:06:16.639 --> 00:06:19.839 Your call. Fact number one. Within a week of 00:06:19.839 --> 00:06:23.620 Bonnaroo, Winyah landed a deal with Atlas Touring. 00:06:24.000 --> 00:06:28.000 A week. Most bands spend years trying to get 00:06:28.000 --> 00:06:31.160 someone to return their emails. These guys played 00:06:31.160 --> 00:06:34.899 one festival and boom, touring deal. Fact number 00:06:34.899 --> 00:06:38.139 two. Their genre -bending sound has let them 00:06:38.139 --> 00:06:42.149 open for wildly Different acts. One weekend they're 00:06:42.149 --> 00:06:45.629 opening for an alt -rock band like Stoplight 00:06:45.629 --> 00:06:49.290 Observations, the next you're supporting an indie 00:06:49.290 --> 00:06:52.610 folk act like Evan Hohner. They fit everywhere 00:06:52.610 --> 00:06:56.610 because they're not trying to fit anywhere. Very 00:06:56.610 --> 00:07:00.709 smart. Fact number three. They're part of Cloverdale, 00:07:01.050 --> 00:07:04.230 a tight -knit collective of Nashville artists, 00:07:04.509 --> 00:07:09.430 including Evan Hohner, Low Gap, and Julia DeGrazia. 00:07:09.660 --> 00:07:13.180 This isn't just a band, it's a movement. They're 00:07:13.180 --> 00:07:15.779 building something bigger than themselves, which 00:07:15.779 --> 00:07:18.879 is refreshing in an industry that usually encourages 00:07:18.879 --> 00:07:22.899 artists to claw each other's eyes out for a Spotify 00:07:22.899 --> 00:07:26.899 stream. And here's my personal favorite fact. 00:07:27.839 --> 00:07:30.939 They once played for three people at Greenville 00:07:30.939 --> 00:07:34.860 County Music Fest, while Bailey Zimmerman rocked 00:07:34.860 --> 00:07:37.579 the main stage. They brought the same energy 00:07:37.579 --> 00:07:41.040 that they bring to pack clubs in brooklyn that's 00:07:41.040 --> 00:07:44.339 a mark of real musicians folks you don't phone 00:07:44.339 --> 00:07:47.800 it in just because the crowd is small you play 00:07:47.800 --> 00:07:51.040 like your life depends on it every single time 00:07:51.040 --> 00:07:53.459 so where do they go from here well they've already 00:07:53.459 --> 00:07:56.279 proven that they can write under pressure tour 00:07:56.279 --> 00:07:59.319 relentlessly and win over crowds that have never 00:07:59.319 --> 00:08:02.740 never heard of them they're currently on their 00:08:02.740 --> 00:08:06.759 we need a van tour which honestly best tour name 00:08:06.759 --> 00:08:10.959 ever and they're playing festivals like Okeechobee 00:08:10.959 --> 00:08:14.639 music and arts alongside Lumineers. Not bad for 00:08:14.639 --> 00:08:17.600 a bunch of guys who name their band after a bae. 00:08:17.839 --> 00:08:21.040 Here's what I love about Wynia. They didn't just 00:08:21.040 --> 00:08:23.420 wait for permission, they didn't wait for the 00:08:23.420 --> 00:08:26.319 right moment or the perfect plan, they got the 00:08:26.319 --> 00:08:28.980 call, locked themselves in a warehouse, and made 00:08:28.980 --> 00:08:32.779 it happen. That's the kind of DIY spirit that 00:08:32.779 --> 00:08:35.759 built rock and roll in the first place. If you 00:08:35.759 --> 00:08:38.389 haven't checked them out yet, Do yourself a favor, 00:08:38.950 --> 00:08:42.610 start with feel it all again, move on to lot 00:08:42.610 --> 00:08:45.649 to learn, and then just let the algorithm take 00:08:45.649 --> 00:08:48.230 you wherever it wants. You won't regret it unless 00:08:48.230 --> 00:08:50.789 you hate good music, in which case I can't help 00:08:50.789 --> 00:08:54.269 you. That's it for today's episode of Shecky's 00:08:54.269 --> 00:08:57.269 Jam Bands. Remember, life is too short to listen 00:08:57.269 --> 00:09:00.269 to boring music, and it's definitely too short 00:09:00.269 --> 00:09:02.409 to wait for permission to chase your dreams. 00:09:02.850 --> 00:09:06.409 Watch Wynia on tour if you can. And if you see 00:09:06.409 --> 00:09:09.769 a guy with bleached hair who looks like he just 00:09:09.769 --> 00:09:13.429 stepped off of a surfboard, that's Butters. Tell 00:09:13.429 --> 00:09:16.549 him Shecky says, what's up? Until next time, 00:09:16.889 --> 00:09:17.629 keep jamming.