Here’s a band worth talking about. Big Walnuts Yonder — a group spearheaded by Nick Reinhart of Tera Melos and bassist/vocalist Mike Watt of Minutemen and The Stooges.
The two are rounded out by guitarist Nels Cline (Wilco) and drummer Greg Saunier (Deerhoof). And it’s not a supergroup — “It’s worlds colliding,” insists Watt.
Worlds that began colliding back in 2008, but took almost a decade to reach fruition. The idea for Big Walnuts Yonder took root when Reinhart and Watt toured Japan together — and it was years before the idea actually took off.
Now a decade later the band is set to release their self-titled debut album. It’s a 10-track effort that was recorded in 3 days with producer and former Pere Ubu bassist Tony Maimone.
Saunier explained, “We basically had to invent a new band on the spot. And people might have a stereotype of what each person does, but we all showed up to do what we’re prevented from doing in other groups.” The main focus of the record: “Let’s not overindulge and make it a ‘musician’s recording’.”
Here’s a stream of their new track “Sponge Bath.”
Big Walnuts Yonder comes out May 5th via Sargent House.