It’s a bright and bustling morning at Radio Milwaukee and Mark Waldoch is ready to begin the day.
“They used to have this thing where they would frenetically interview somebody for eighty-eight seconds,” he says. “They’re bringing it back, and I guess I’m one of the first ones to redo it.”
The impending 88-second interview isn’t the only thing on Waldoch’s mind. His long-gestating band, The Hallelujah Ward, is on the verge of releasing its equally long-gestating EP, I Forced Myself To Live, Charlie Bee. It’s a five-song collection of dynamic and off-kilter indie-rock songs that Waldoch and company have been tinkering with for the past three years—and, in some cases, even longer.
“This band has been trying to start since before the pandemic,” Waldoch laughs. “There are verses and choruses and bridges from songs I wrote ten years ago.”
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Waldoch, of course, is no stranger to local music fans. When he’s not slinging drinks at seemingly every Milwaukee bar of note, the forever-busy (and always dapperly dressed) musician spends his time playing at seemingly every Milwaukee venue and festival of note. The Cooperage, Cactus Club, Bay View Bash, Summer Soulstice, the list goes on. Many of those gigs feature Waldoch solo, accompanied only by a city-grid of guitar pedals and his own booming, hold-onto-your-seats-because-here-he-goes voice. But with the release of Charlie Bee and a steady three-piece lineup—Waldoch, drummer Dan Didier, bassist Paul Hancock—The Hallelujah Ward finally feels like a distinct band.
“With Mark bringing these song he had played a thousand times solo, and then trying to retrofit a band into that, that was a new experience for me,” says Didier, who has decades’ worth of experiences with bands like The Promise Ring, Maritime, Dramatic Lovers, and more. “There’d be choices that were made that worked really well for him solo, but now there were two other people who needed to sync in with that.”
Along with Hancock (Testa Rosa), Waldoch and Didier give everything they’ve got on Charlie Bee. Lead single “Manageable Oblivion” is a driving, irresistible, heart-on-its-sleeve banger stuffed with quotable lyrics (“My friendless ocean has become
an acquired kink”) and those patented hold-onto-your-seats-because-here-he-goes moments. “Love In A Time Of Blah Blah Blah” and “Blonde” swoop and soar along with Waldoch’s effects-laden vocals. “An Anthology Of Disappointing Young Poets” slowly builds to a psych-indebted climax, and closer “86,000 Heartbeats” plays more like a prayer than a pop song. Recorded and mixed by Kevin Dixon (Brief Candles) and mastered by Justin Perkins (Mystery Room Mastering), I Forced Myself To Live, Charlie Bee is as unafraid and life-affirming as its title suggests. (The namesake of the EP is Waldoch’s longtime friend and creative partner.)
A full-length Hallelujah Ward record is in the works. For now, however, Waldoch is happy to have the five Charlie Bee tracks out in the world, complete and fully formed.
“Even just sharing these songs with friends before the release has been fun,” he says. “And then playing the songs live, and seeing people mouthing the words, you’re like, ‘Oh yeah, this is fun!’ People get something out of it, you know?”
Looking to experience The Hallelujah Ward for yourself? You can catch the band at Flannel Fest, October 19 at The Cooperage.
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