I won’t lie, Gunslingers has to be one of the cooler band names I’ve encountered since my tenure at Happy commenced. Not because it sounds badass or ‘dangerous’, but there’s an urgency about it. Or perhaps I’ve been watching too much Cowboy Bepop lately* and gun-slinging awesomeness is totally in vogue for me right now. Regardless, like the dashing Spike Speigel Gunslingers are quick on the draw to provide a fun, dynamic, action packed experience. And that is none the more clear than on our premiere of their new track I’ll Always Be Waiting.
Melbourne’s Gunslinger’s are premiering the new single I’ll Always Be Waiting, a track that wears distortion with the same pride that Fonzie wears a leather jacket.
Gunslingers have slowly been making a name for themselves, working with some big names to help them hone their craft. If their upcoming album DJANGUS had a movie trailer, there would without a doubt be a section that reads “From Paul Maybury, producer of King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard…” I‘ll Always Be Waiting is the second tasting of that debut album and if it’s anything to go by this may we’ll be a pop-punk banquet any fan would be a fool to miss.
I’ll Always Be Waiting is a pretty fun little rock song. Think along the same vein as The Bennies or Joyce Manor. There’s some fairly straight forward chords and even more straight forward lyrics. In case it somehow got passed you, this song is about missing that special someone, and that yearning fuelling the promise of undying devotion. Considering International Guilted Into Sex For a Box of Chocolates and Roses Day is on the ever approaching horizon, this track is kind of cute in that regard. But as I said, in the realm of rock music, particularly a track such as this that is steeped in the tropes of pop-punk and garage rock, the ‘undying love for a girl who isn’t around’ narrative is a tried one.
So why bother talking about this song? The execution, that’s why. The flurry of guitars wear distortion like Fonzie wears a leather jacket; like it’s a part of the skin and one they take pride in. The riff is catchy as hell and doesn’t let up for a minute. The washed out wailing vocals communicate the anguish in an almost nonchalant way, particularly in the line “I know, there’s a new world, and it’s time now for me to explore. But I’ll always be waiting for you to walk through my door”. But the real kicker to this song is the outro.
I’m always partial to a good old fade out, or really anything where the outro takes the opportunity to explore and expand upon the dimension of a track. In this case things are slowed down exponentially, the noisy guitar music switched out for the angelic, choir-esque chanting of “Always be, always be, always be with me”. As the nasal wailing gives way to the more subdued vocals it manages to elevate the song to an exciting new place. It is almost as if the character’s need to be by his beloved’s side has transcended to a point where he acknowledges that while he may not be able to be there for her in that regard, that love will regardless always be there.
With the likes of Blink-182 having an incredibly embarrassing public fall out the world is in dire need of unabashedly good time rockin’ bands like Gunslingers. Their album DJANGUS is out April 10, and if you happen to be in old Melbourne town on February 21 be sure to head to The John Curtin for the I‘ll Always Be Waiting single launch show.
*Nonsense, there is no such thing as ‘too much’ Cowboy Bepop.
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