Local easy listening legends Well Well Well (IG, SC, BC, YT) return with more music for uneasy people on their new album Summertime Heat, out September 6th (Bandcamp Friday!) on Royal Oakie Records available direct or on their Bandcamp in digital, CD, and cassette formats (collect ’em all!). We had a chat with Seton Edgerton about his and Dan Nichols‘ latest offering, inspirations, and future opportunities to see them on stage in San Diego.
ListenSD: You’ve been building up the heat all summer with singles from the new album, and now that the temperature’s rising across the county, you’re releasing Summertime Heat in full. What prompted the decision to go with the slow burn and release a single every week? What’s the reception been like?
Well Well Well: We wanted Summertime Heat to be shared in moments across the summer so that each single had their time to shine and blossom. Each song is so different and latches onto so many genres yet is unmistakably Well Well Well. The reception has been great, lots of good press from all over the world & we’re eager to bring the album to life and hit the road.
LSD: We’re always excited to see your travelogue posts because we know when we see picturesque vacation spaces transforming into recording spaces that brand new tunes are imminent. What locations witnessed the gestation of the Summertime Heat tracks?
Well Well Well: The airbnb takeovers that we’ve become known for were pivotal in the writing and demoing of Summertime Heat. We recorded in Joshua Tree, Big Bear Lake, Pine Mountain Club, Lake Cuyamaca & San Diego (Rarefied Recording in North Park & at my house in Bankers Hill). We have our next session with Bruin booked next month in Idyllwild, much more on the way.
LSD: Some song origins are well understood, from the hilarious COVID-era, beach cop interaction of No Surfing, to the randomness of a Gelson’s encounter with Double Take Jake, to the obvious inspiration behind Mar-A-Lago. Could you share the origin story of one of the other album tracks that might not be as readily apparent?
Well Well Well: “Summertime Heat” was written as an homage to growing up in Los Angeles on the edges of the San Fernando Valley. My high school was in Encino so everyday on the way to school my mom would drop my brother and I off in the family mini-van and she would always be bumping Smooth Jazz 94.7 The Wave. I swear I would have never voluntarily listened to that music on my own but here we are. Smooth Jazz, hot days, warm nights. Those seemed to be constants in my upbringing so I decided to do them justice with a twist of Well Well Well magic.
LSD: You’ve worked with an impressive array of producers on previous releases, including Bruin, Gardens & Villa, and The Mattson 2. On Summertime Heat, you have long-time Toro Y Moi collaborator Pat Jones mixing half the album and David Glasebrook from Royal Okie Records handling the other half. How was the experience? What lessons or tricks of the trade did you pick up while working with them?
Well Well Well: It’s always been a goal of mine on each album or song to collaborate with musicians I look up to & respect. I enjoy & welcome feedback and love to see what happens to ideas that come from usually just a guitar, piano or voice memo into a brand new creation that a random group of musicians got to put their hands on. Something unique, different & still undefinable. David & Pat both have their own processes that I was able to learn a lot from but in the end I feel like we we’re always encouraged to do our own thing and allow them be the glue that put the pieces together that made the songs shine.
LSD: We’ve had the pleasure of enjoying the Well Well Well experience in a multitude of iterations (seeing two-handed Dan on the drums AND keys will always be a top moment for us) and have grown particularly fond of the current 5-piece (sometimes 5+) lineup that we get to see locally. How did you go about recruiting these players? Have they all gotten to participate in recent tours or are they strictly local?
Well Well Well: We’ve been very fortunate to have some of the best musicians in the city team up with us for recordings & live shows. They have been pivotal in our growth & our sound and they each offer something different but overall are mostly just excellent people before anything. Daniel “Danimal” Ercoli is one of the best drummers in the city and one of the best dudes to riff with. You can catch us peppersteakin’ on the strand or putt-puttin’ our way through Balboa bogeys. Jesse Weatherholt & Garrison Cyr we met through the OB scene and are both super intuitive & talented shredsmen. Garry is our low-end lord on the 4 strings & Jesse is the driving force on guitar keeping that funky riffage flowing. Kyle Palaniuk is our most recent addition and he’s been a huge part of expanding our sound & helping us not only understand our songs better with his jazz background but his drive & passion when it comes to music/life.
LSD: Speaking of tours, it appears that Well Well Well has a reputation as Donny Benet‘s go-to warm up act, having joined him on a couple of his most recent US runs. How did this serendipitous relationship come about? The Don seems like one of the most genuine class acts out there, can you confirm with heaps of praise for his selfless nature or deny with juicy details regarding any cracks in the veneer?
Well Well Well: Donny has been the best tour dad/companion we’ve ever had the pleasure of hitting the road with. We learned so much from him on/off stage. His professionalism & drive are unmatched. We got linked together through just one Soda Bar show a couple years ago & let the pieces fall into place after that. We’re very grateful for the opportunities and his fans are the best. We look forward to doing it all over again someday.
LSD: We’re still fully immersed in the Summertime Heat (musically AND literally), but we can’t help looking forward to the holidays, when it’s always Too Hot To Be Christmas. Any early plans for what will be the 3rd Annual Well Well Well & Bruin Christmas Spectacular?
Well Well Well: We have a date confirmed in December with Casbah for our 3rd annual Christmas Spectacular and we are putting the finishing touches on a unique album release event in North Park on October 12th. More details to be announced very soon on location, sets & speakeasy menu
LSD: Thanks for setting our uneasy minds at ease, can’t wait to set sail with Well Well Well again soon!
Rest assured, ListenSD will bring you more bulletins on those upcoming shows as events warrant, meanwhile go getcha some Summertime Heat!
Album Artwork by Andrew McGranahan