Big Stir Records is proud to welcome the newest addition to our roster: WORMSTEW, the Long Beach-based indie pop-folk trio featuring three longtime key players from the LA power pop scene. The band makes its label debut with the irresistibly charming single “Spinning,” offering audiences worldwide their first taste of the hooks and and witty wordplay that await when their debut album sees release later this Spring. The new single, accompanied by an equally clever official music video, is out February 13 on all digital platforms worldwide and up for preorder and pre-save now:

https://orcd.co/wormstew-spinning

While WORMSTEW has existed in various forms, all fronted by LA pop scene fixture MIKE SCHNEE, for years, the band – in its definitive new lineup including bassist/vocalist TERESA COWLES (EZ Tiger, Dragster Barbie, Evie Sands) and drummer/vocalist/producer MICHAEL SIMMONS (of sparkle*jets u.k. and solo renown) consider their new material their “proper” debut. The band's live shows and prior singles and EPs, as well as SCHNEE's ongoing surrealist comedy work as his alter ego Chissum Worthington, have earned them a loyal local following, and the strength of their recent songs along with the deftly detailed touch of Simmons as a producer have resulted in an album, LAST DAYS OF LOMA, that demands a broader audience. The giddy hooks, winning wordplay and ace harmonies of “Spinning” are the perfect introduction.

Galloping in on a shuffling beat and an instantly-memorable organ riff, “Spinning” brings a smile right away, especially when Schnee starts singing. The wit of the lyrics and the glee of his delivery simply radiate off of the track, and when Cowles and Simmons join in for the immaculate harmonies of the chorus, the track lifts off into the AM Gold stratosphere. It wouldn't do to say that Wormstew has gotten more “mature” in comparison to their early work: the humor may be more understated and the reasons for Schnee's citation of Neil Young, McCartney and Paul Simon as influences are evident, but there's more than a touch of the childlike enthusiasm of Jonathan Richman and the playfulness of Ween on display, too.

“I wrote this entire song—everything except the lyrics—years ago: the chords, rhythm, and melody. I couldn’t think of anything to sing about, but I also knew I didn’t want to change a single note. I wanted every syllable to stay exactly as I had 'scat-sung' it on the demo,” says Schnee. “Years later, on a road trip to Lone Pine with Teresa, I finally found the subject matter. As a bonus, I somehow managed to find a real word for every single 'da' I had sung.” Everything gels on the resulting track and it's an ideal jumping-on point for new fans, who can expect the breezy production and warm humor to inform every track on the new album, even as the songs touch on topics from grief, aging, the drive to be a better person and even the characters of the classic movie JAWS. There's much to discover in the world of WORMSTEW... and it all starts here, with “Spinning.”