{"id":100838,"date":"2025-11-13T14:00:32","date_gmt":"2025-11-13T14:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/?p=100838"},"modified":"2025-11-12T21:56:52","modified_gmt":"2025-11-12T21:56:52","slug":"review-ben-quad-wisher","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/review-ben-quad-wisher\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Ben Quad – Wisher"},"content":{"rendered":"

Having come together through Craigslist and bonded through a mutual love for Microwave and Modern Baseball, Oklahoma City’s Ben Quad<\/strong> certainly sounds and feels at home among their influences on their second album,\u00a0‘Wisher’<\/em>. Its arrival comes off a productive few years for the quartet. 2022’s debut album, ‘I’m Scared That’s All There Is’<\/em>\u00a0 received praise from noteworthy indie tastemakers, embracing fourth and fifth wave emo into their musical fabric. Last\u00a0year’s <\/span>Ephemera’<\/em> EP saw them take a different route, leaning towards more screamo. Nevertheless, it saw them be touted to be the “next big thing in emo”. Even if they’re classing themselves as “post-emo”.<\/p>\n

For those who have followed\u00a0Ben Quad<\/strong>, their Pure Noise<\/strong> debut comes with a hint of expectations. However, with the help of producer Jon Markson (The Story So Far, Drug Church),\u00a0‘Wisher’<\/em> captures a band tied to their roots, with hints of exploration. For example,\u00a0‘Very Big in Sheboygan’<\/em> utilises bright synth keys among its springy pop-punk tone. While there is a warm driftiness to ‘West of West’<\/em> with Microwave\u2019s Nathan Hardy providing a vocal bite. Likewise,\u00a0‘All Your Luck’<\/em> highlights the quartet’s mellow side, without sacrificing their roots. As a banjo twinkles away in the distance, impactful drums and layered harmonies provide a reassuring anchor.<\/p>\n

Yet\u00a0Ben Quad<\/strong> know their bread and butter is in optimistic emo, that stylistic nods to its Midwestern roots. ‘Did You Decide to Skip Arts and Crafts?’<\/em> (featuring Treaty Oak Revival’s Sam Canty) thrives thanks to Isaac Young’s punctual drum work and the vocal back-and-forth between Sam Wegrzynski and bassist Henry Shields.\u00a0Meanwhile, Sweet Pill’s Zayna Youssef adds soaring harmonies to the jagged onslaught that\u00a0‘You Wanted Us, You Got Us’<\/em> provides. Young’s low-end drums, Edgar Viveros’s twisting guitar parts, and Wegrzynski’s screams give the track plenty of energy.<\/p>\n