Ben Quad break down every track on new album ‘Wisher’

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OKC emo band Ben Quad just released their sophomore album (and Pure Noise debut) Wisher today. Following the mathy Midwest emo of their 2022 debut LP I’m Scared That’s All There Is and the heavy screamo of 2024’s Ephemera EP, it finds them leaning into early 2000s-style emo, channelling bands like Taking Back Sunday and Motion City Soundtrack, and it has guest vocals from Sweet Pill’s Zayna Youssef, Microwave’s Nathan Hardy, and Treaty Oak Revival’s Sam Canty. You can read my review of the album in Notable Releases, and for an even deeper dive into this LP, lead guitarist Edgar Viverous and rhythm guitarist/vocalist Sam Wegrynski gave us a track-by-track breakdown of the whole thing. Head below to see what they had to say.

Ben Quad also told us about five Oklahoma City bands that we should all know in a new video that you can also watch below, and they’re currently on the road supporting Koyo on their fall tour, alongside Restraining Order and rising post-hardcore/metalcore band I Promised the World. That tour ends in NYC on November 23 at Racket with additional local support from Koyo’s Long Island neighbors Ten Years Out. Next year, both Koyo and Ben Quad will open for Arm’s Length on a Europe/UK tour. All upcoming dates are listed below.

Pick up your copy of Wisher here.

Wisher by Ben Quad

BEN QUAD – WISHER TRACK-BY-TRACK BREAKDOWN

1. “What Fer?”
When planning out the record, we set a goal for ourselves to write our first proper intro track for a release. We wanted it to be one of those moments where the music spoke for itself. The lyrics at the start are very minimalistic and set the tone for the record. The country/folk instrumentation and glitchy guitar section all foreshadow what’s to come next. – Edgar

2. “Painless”
“Painless” is about processing feelings of grief and guilt after the loss of a close friend. This song feels like a marriage of our I’m Scared That’s All There Is LP and Ephemera EP. There’s a good mix of post-hardcore and our classic Midwest emo sound in there. The vocal trade-offs between Sam and Henry were heavily inspired by Taking Back Sunday. – Edgar

3. “You Wanted Us, You Got Us” (feat. Zayna Youssef)
This track has the most carryover sound from our EP, Ephemera. Lyrically, it’s an angry song about a toxic person who’s never taken accountability. After we finished demoing the song, we realized that some higher range vocals would be perfect to complement Sam’s screaming. Zayna from Sweet Pill immediately came to mind and we’re so stoked that the feature came together. – Edgar

4. “Did You Decide To Skip Arts and Crafts?” (feat. Sam Canty)
This track kind of follows a similar vibe as the previous track but it’s a lot more triumphant. It’s basically telling off an individual who downplayed the efforts we were putting into the band in the early days. This track is special because it’s the most “Oklahoma” sounding song in our discography yet. There’s moments where it sounds like a massive country rock song. The big cherry on top is definitely the guest vocals provided by our friend Sam Canty. He sent us that funny voicemail that plays at the beginning at like 2 or 3am after a show he played one night. That and the bridge feature brought the song to another level. – Edgar

5. “It’s Just A Title”
This song is basically about living with existential dread and trying to cope with that feeling as you get older. We took big cues from bands we loved growing up like (All American Rejects, Motion City Soundtrack, etc.) and just tried to make a super catchy pop song with synth and an over-the-top guitar solo. – Edgar

6. “Very Big In Sheboygan”
This is a long distance relationship song. We once again leaned heavy into the synth usage and pop sensibility. This is a song where we really challenged ourselves to just let go and trust our gut. It felt good to finally make an open and honest love song that wasn’t just about being sad. – Edgar

7. “All Your Luck”
Back to back love songs. This is a song about loving someone unconditionally despite any self-doubt or insecurity they may have. At its core, Wisher is about embracing the little, beautiful moments in life. The goal for this song was to represent some of those moments of happiness. We also had a lot of fun recording the instrumentals and threw so much stuff at the wall like banjo, bongos, vocal percussion, etc. – Edgar

8. “Classic Case of Guy on The Ground”
An attempt at a soft “I told you so” moment, this song is about a friend or partner falling back into old/dangerous habits, and realizing things won’t ever be the same. It’s a response to that kind of situation, whether that’s a relationship dynamic, drugs, or a friend no longer reaching out. We tried to channel our inner ’90s pop rock for this one. – Sam

9. “West of West “(feat. Nathan Hardy)
This song speaks for itself. It’s about losing a family member while on the road. While the lyrics were tough to write, we had a blast writing the instrumentals. It’s a song a lot of us are most proud of from the record. From the start we thought Nathan’s voice would be a perfect fit for a song like this, where we tried our best to balance vulnerability and anger. We were so excited he was down to hop on and lend his talent. – Sam

10. “I Hate Cursive and I Hate All of You”
Lots of people ask if the name is a reference to the band Cursive but it’s a Billy Madison reference. This song is about finally letting go of someone and moving forward. – Edgar

Ben Quad — 2025/2026 Tour Dates

with Koyo, Restraining Order, I Promised the World:
November 14 – Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade
November 17 – Charlotte, NC – Amos’ Southend
November 18 – Richmond, VA – Canal Club
November 20 – Washington, DC – Pearl Street Warehouse
November 21 – Somerville, MA – Cafe at The Somerville Armory
November 22 – Philadelphia, PA – First Unitarian Church
November 23 – New York, NY – Racket NYC

with Arm’s Length, Koyo, Shoreline:
February 5 – Southampton, UK – Engine Rooms
February 6 – London, UK – O2 Academy Islington
February 7 – Manchester, UK – Club Academy
February 9 – Glasgow, UK – G2, The Garage
February 10 – Newcastle Upon Tune, UK – The Grove
February 12 – Liverpool, UK – District
February 13 – Leeds, UK – Project House
February 14 – Birmingham, UK – O2 Academy 2
February 15 – Kingston Upon Thames, UK – Fighting Cocks
February 18 – Antwerpen, Belgium
February 19 – Eindhoven, Netherlands – Dynamo
February 20 – Cologne, Germany – Gebäude 9
February 21 – Hamburg, Germany – LOGO