We’re not going to pretend that a band with a name like Wonky Tonk singing a song called ‘Wonk On‘ isn’t likely to provoke thoughts of whimsy and quirkiness – maybe it’ll sound something like Lavender Diamond? If that is what you have in your head then just forget it. Well, maybe not completely, there is some quirk, but don’t let it prevent you from hearing what is a hell of a song.
‘Wonk On‘ comes from the latest album -‘Lessons & Lovers‘ – by Cincinnati, Ohio-based band Wonky Tonk & the HighLife. Wonky Tonk – also known as Jasmine Poole – told us about the song and how it relates to the world right now.
“‘Lessons & Lovers’ was quietly released during the onslaught of pandemic, and ‘Wonk On’ has been sitting here whispering, “wait, wait … wait until the world is ready.” During this Pandemic I have been quarantined in Ecuador where I uprooted in order to hear my heart better. I have witnessed the world from the center, and my ‘life’ from afar. The fear and anger, denial and depression, of quarantine, of virus, of social unrest, of injustice, of every single part of our ‘concrete’ lives be diminished to sand and beckoning to become a village of sandcastles with acceptance of the newly forged materials; propelling us through grief, rapid-fire, in all aspect of our lives, bodies, minds, spirits and souls. ‘Wonk On’ is the sound of choosing life, choosing love, choosing to move through the grief and learn the lessons; to trust our hearts and what they are singing, to love our bodies and to remember our dreams.”
And if you like what you’re hearing then also check out (with the demarcation blessing of our Video Editor) the same song but in living colour on Youtube here.