“It’s about voices that get ignored or pushed aside.”
A fact that may be surprising: the guy behind the debut single ‘World We Share’ has been playing bass for Robin Gibb, touring with Saxon and working The Classic Rock Show circuit for years, and this is his first release under his own name. Took him long enough, honestly, because on this evidence he should’ve done it years ago!
‘World We Share’ doesn’t waste time being subtle. It’s an upbeat, anthemic indie rock track that sounds like it was written with a festival crowd in mind from the first chord, big and open in a way that makes you want to shout the chorus back before you’ve even learned the words properly.
What stops it from being just another feel-good singalong is what’s underneath it. Wayne Banks grew up on a council estate in Nottingham, and he’s said this track comes directly out of that, watching people written off or divided by class and background. Rather than dwell on that division, though, the song pushes hard the other way, towards unity, towards people refusing to be boxed in or talked over. “It’s about voices that get ignored or pushed aside,” as Banks puts it, “and about refusing to disappear.“
That’s a solid thesis for a debut, and the track backs it up. You can hear the Oasis and The Jam in the DNA here, plenty of The Who too, but it doesn’t feel like tribute act territory. It feels earned, particularly once you know the story behind it. Mastered at Abbey Road, it sounds every bit as accomplished as Banks’ résumé would suggest.
The smart part is that this clearly isn’t meant to stand alone. Second single ‘Cold River’ is out 22nd September, and a full debut album follows in November, so ‘World We Share’ plays more like a first impression than a finished statement. If this is the opening line, I’m curious what the rest of the paragraph looks like.
Stick it on, turn it up, and keep Wayne Banks on your radar. This one’s just getting started.
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COVER & PRESS PHOTO: Photo by Izzy Rubin-Burnett | Edits by Amelia Banks
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