By Cherry Williams

Nashville-based indie-rock sextet Waker released their long-awaited debut album, Fresh Out, on May 7 via Jullian Records. Fresh Out is the story of an American road band in the year 2020 and the trials and tribulations they’ve had to endure along the way. 

The group -- composed of Chase Bader, Conor Kelly, Ryan Ladd, Ryan McClanahan, Al Mathews, and Dave Czuba -- combines the spirit of classic rock, the pathos of Motown soul, the restless experimentation of jam band music, and the songwriting acumen of the best indie rock to produce an original sound on the album that spans the American musical spectrum. 

Press play and the album hurtles out of the gate with the lead single “Waiting On You,” a song the band wrote late one night after finishing a marathon writing session. Recalling prime-era Dave Matthews Band, “Many Days Ahead” holds a special meaning for McClanahan. “It has a ringing message which feels true today,” he says, “about not getting so caught up in what’s going on now.” 

The album closes with the last number written and recorded called “Small Song,” which showcases the more introspective nature of the lyrics. The tune is a meditation on ever-changing circumstances and the hidden beauty found in life’s dramatic turns. “I really wanted that song to be the last song,” says Bader. “That song to me just says it all, that you can’t appreciate something until you’re away from it, until you’re outside of a frame and you can actually take a look.” 

Waker now sits outside the frame of Fresh Out, and they like what they see. They’re eager to give it another life on stage, where it can grow in the hearts and minds of their burgeoning fan base. As Bader says, “the music of Waker is all about what’s possible, and ‘Fresh Out’ is chock full of possibility.”