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Wino Wednesday: Wino, Punctuated Equilibrium in Full

I understand why the Wino trio only lasted as long as it did, what with drummer Jean-Paul Gaster‘s neverending tour commitments with Clutch and the death of bassist Jon Blank after the three-piece’s return from their successful European run, and as much as the solo acoustic material Wino has released since working under his own moniker has been a fascinating progression to witness and has resulted in no shortage of brilliant songwriting and performances, I still really dig the hell out of Punctuated Equilibrium. It’s not an all-the-time album, but it’s definitely a fit for summer, and as it’s started to warm up here in the desolate north, I’m finding it worth yet another return listen, the catchy, sunshiny opening of “Release Me” telling of some of the good-time vibes to follow.

Punctuated Equilibrium came out early in 2009 on Southern Lord Recordings, and aside from uniting Scott “Wino” Weinrich and Gaster at the top of the bill, it also tied together a lot of Wino‘s songwriting as demonstrated throughout the years in his various bands. “Smilin’ Road” had some of the upbeat vibes of Spirit Caravan, while the following “Eyes of the Flesh” tapped into the classic doom of The Obsessed and both “Gods, Frauds, Neo-Cons and Demagogues” and “Secret Realm Devotion” touched on themes and a more mystical take on heavy rock evocative of The Hidden Hand. Of course, the constant running through all of those bands is Wino‘s songwriting itself, and front-to-back, Punctuated Equilibrium demonstrated plainly that whatever the context, Wino‘s guitar and vocals were among the most distinctive in heavy.

The shame of it is that as Wino moved on to solo work, his collaboration with Conny Ochs and reunions with Saint Vitus, The Obsessed and Spirit Caravan, these songs were left behind. Maybe one of these days they’ll get picked back up for an acoustic reinterpretation or something. Till then, have a great Wino Wednesday.

Wino, Punctuated Equilibrium (2009)

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