Rock and roll to your heart’s content, as ukulele indie-rock outfit Winchester 7 & the Runners deliver their most engaging and memorable collection of originals yet.
The seven-track album Heart Of The Golden Mystics promises the very best of the act’s authentically emotive, poetic and catchy songwriting, with organic rock grooves underneath and plenty of striking riffs.
The Saint Simon Killer Returns marks a fine introduction, boasting all of these qualities and quickly prompting the listener to crank up the volume and get lost in a timeless new anthem.
‘It’s gonna be alright’ resounds and celebrates the moment, surrounded by a story of intrigue and fascination; ultimately resolving with a brilliantly uplifting instance of unity and colorful distraction.
As the project continues, versatility impresses – the acoustic warmth of Her Double Life quickly recapturing any wandering minds, with a softness and psychedelic production thread that shines light on yet another interesting story. Short lines and familiar melodic progressions give this the comforting feeling of being another slept-on classic from a simpler era.
Then we get the higher-octane stomp of Married For The Money, and the subsequent reflective march and solo-swagger of The Sum Of Our Mistakes – this writing style and vocal-pairing now unmistakable as Winchester 7 & the Runners.
Stripping things back again is the quiet and contemplative Miss Merry’s Memoriam, softly soulful and instantly catchy – a definite highlight for its fine chemistry between topic, performance and style.
Towards the final moments, the single Your House Of Cards utilises those effected bends and descending melody-lines to lay out another metaphorical life-lesson that’s both compelling and strangely relatable. And afterwards, the indie-rock fuzz and fullness of Things Will Never Be The Same offers a notably hypnotic, nostalgic anthem that again gets the imagination roaming.
As a bonus-track, Winchester 7 & the Runners have thrown in a beautifully respectable New Order cover – an enchanting take on Bizarre Love Triangle – which makes for a gorgeously moving closer, and a lasting reminder of the musicianship, talent and precision that has been employed to create this sound and craft this uniquely enjoyable album.
A real pleasure to let play this season, and a fine testament to a devoted indie act worth knowing about.
Check out Winchester 7 & the Runners on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube & their Website.
Thanks, Rebecca! We appreciate the kind words. Happy holidays!