Meet The Walkers
Meet 'The Walkers'
by Alec Kissoondyal
I first met Stew and Wes Walker back in 2016 when I was a produce clerk at the Publix where they got their shopping done. Little did I know that the two brothers would form a band appropriately named 'The Walkers,' which boasts talented musicians such as drummer Kevin Korus, saxophonist & EWI player David Daza, and classically trained violinist Stephen Fine.
Fast forward to 2020, and I had the opportunity to interview the entire band, who graciously provided a heartfelt look into their musical journey.
Q: You guys played with the Black Lips last month. What was that like?
Stephen: They played a super tight set. They were really professional. I was very impressed.
Wes: Professional in a wild sense.
Kevin: It was well-manicured wildness, though. Fucking awesome.
Q: What makes the Gainesville music scene different from anywhere else?
Stew: I think it's really coming up right now. There's a lot of really interesting stuff happening. There's a lot of really cool bands. I think it's starting to really bloom.
Kevin: People come out. You can play in other towns and people don't come out. You end up playing for the other bands and their girlfriends, but in Gainesville, people come out to see you. Even if it's five or ten people, it's still supporting the music. The local scene is pretty cool.
Wes: The Gainesville music scene has gone through a lot of changes. Right now, it seems like there's almost like a couple of main groups. There's obviously offshoots of that, but there's a big jam band following which is geared more toward the Spirit of Suwannee crowd, and there's also the fest scene. There's a lot of punk, which a lot of people know about. I find that we're somewhere in the middle.
Q: Where do you guys get your unique sound?
Wes: Our dad used to drop us off to school listening to The Doors and The Rolling Stones. My mom played The Beatles, but we were also lucky enough to get these guys into the group. David Daza joined the band about a year ago, year and a half, something like that. Kevin has been with us since the incarnation of The Walkers, which has been about three and a half years. We'll have songs that we bring to the table, and then they'll also have songs, and we'll gather them together. Sometimes they're finished songs, but we'll put our creative influence together. Being that David was in Jazz band, and marching band, Kevin played with bands in Nebraska, and Stephen is a classically trained violin player, there are perspectives that give (the music) its own flavors.
Stew: I think Wes hit the nail on the head. We grew up listening to so many different types of music. I've listened to so much music that I don't want to be pigeon-holed into one category, and I don't think any of these guys want to either. We got some new material we're working on right now that I think is really unique.
Kevin: The two Walker brothers do a lot of the writing, and it's cool to see the difference between the songs that Wes creates and the songs that Stew creates. By the time they're done, we all have a say in it too. There's this theme that runs through The Walkers album. Their voices are a part of it, and their songwriting style is unique, different yet really similar.
Stephen: (Stew and Wes) are both nerds about the classics, the 70's, metal...
Q: What are some influences outside of music that influence your work?
Kevin: Women (Laughs). I can't write a song that's not about a woman.
Stew: I write a lot of songs with a natural theme. I love being outside, going on hikes, going to Payne's Prairie. Going out into nature is just so peaceful. It's therapeutic for the soul, and you feel a lot better after being outside, so I put a lot of nature elements in the songs I write.
Wes: There are certain things that spur creativity, through pain or hardship, or a lot of the things that we go through together as brothers, or as a band. This is an outlet. Maybe it's like this for a lot of bands, but this kind of like a fellowship where, if I have a hard time at work for example, my dudes are here to jam. Another theme that we write about often is a fantasy or sci-fi element. Stephen is an avid reader, and David is a gamer. Stew and I love the horror genre, and sci-fi.
David: Not only do we achieve sounds that make you think that, the lyrics also reflect that interest in the sci-fi realm.
Wes: Some of the new songs maybe have more romantic elements, but the ones on the first album included mythology. One of the songs mentions Horus, or Set, and Osiris. I love to study Greek, Egyptian, Roman mythology, and Indian culture.
You can catch The Walkers live on March 13th. They will be performing at Sarbez in St. Augustine, along with the Dewars.