When Ian McGuiness (Side Saddle) first began working on what would become the Waltermelon EP, he did so right as he was making a big move from Queens, NY to Boston, MA for a new job. That gig would have him on the road 3 weeks out of 4 each month, and the drastic change in lifestyle was disorienting to say the least. To further complicate things, his then-girlfriend had just moved to Austin, TX to finish her degree. Figuring out how to navigate that long-distance relationship would end up inspiring “Ink & Dirty Strings”, but the work travel schedule and the uprooting of his life on many fronts took a toll, and the Waltermelon EP was put on hold.

“I started having super intense flourishes of anxiety and depression,” explains Ian, “I couldn’t seem to make time to record, rehearse, or see my band mates who were still living back in Queens, and I was later diagnosed with Adjustment Disorder with Anxiety.”

Eventually, Ian’s fiance returned after completing school, they settled down in a house in Providence, RI and he began to work on the EP again. He reconnected with his bandmates in Queens and they got back in the studio, finishing Waltermelon over two weekends while recording at Buddy Project studios in Astoria, NY. Songs like “Sparks Fly” and “Ireland” reflect on falling in love, while “Chemistry” explores the high highs and low lows that can leave one feeling like their brain chemistry is off.

As the release date for the EP approaches Ian is yet again in the midst of a move, but this one has him coming back to New York and the community he’d built here. A full circle return that mirrors the anxious yet hopeful journey the songs on the EP takes the listener along for. - Glide Magazine