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Massachusetts rock band theWANDAS may call Boston home, but they’ve never forgotten their Worcester County roots. The quartet will be returning to Worcester on Saturday, Dec. 22, to play a follow-up show to their Thanksgiving extravaganza at Tammany Hall. “We play Worcester quite frequently, which is nice,” said lead vocalist and rhythm guitar player Keith McEachern. McEachern, a native of Worcester, formed theWANDAS in 2001, which features the current line up, in addition to himself, Brent Battey on lead guitar and backing vocals, Ross Lucivero on bass guitar and backing vocals, and Pete McElholm on drums. McEachern graduated from Auburn High School in 2001with his childhood friend McElholm, who is originally from Oxford. Following high school, the two attended Berklee College of Music where they began jamming with Battey. In 2005, after graduating from the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, McEachern’s cousin and Paxton native Lucivero, moved to Boston, replacing theWANDAS’ former bass player who had to move home to Halifax, Nova Scotia, after his temporary visa expired, thus completing the band. Influenced by acts such as Radiohead, The Strokes, Sean Lennon, and The Dears, theWANDAS released the self produced, “if the accident will…” in 2004, recorded in Halifax, Nova Scotia. In 2006, the band produced their second long play recording,“Can’t say danger on the radio,”which was recorded and mixed at The Noise Flower in Allston. Selected songs are available for listening through the band’s web site www.thewandas.com and both com- plete albums are available for download through iTunes.com. Most recently, theWANDAS completed their newest offering, “You should have lis-tened.” “This is by far the best stuff we’ve ever done,”McEachern said of the new extended play album,which is slated to be released for purchase on iTunes.com in January.The band is also working out a deal with purevolume.com to release the album for free to the public. “You should have listened”was produced by Patrick Krief of The Dears and was mixed by Clement Goulet. “Before that we self produced all of our stuff,”Battey said. “Having that person on the outside that we trusted,allowed us to be a little bit more creative.” While developing their hard driven yet melodic signature sound, theWANDAS dabbled in everything from country to hard rock, utilizing sounds and techniques from a wide range of influences. Now employing an additional drum machine and working out intricate harmonies,McEachern said,“When you bring that together, that’s when you come up with an interesting sound.” Outside of the studio, theWANDAS’ song, “Headlines,”is featured in the film “Concrete Cowboys,” a documentary on the sport of street luge, as well as in the 2004 Major League Baseball all-star wrap-up video. The band also recorded the INXS tune “The One Thing,”for the yet to be released film, “We Got the Beat.” As far as touring goes, Lucivero explained that theWANDAS spin a regular web between Boston, Worcester, Providence, and New York, playing each location about once a month, though they have occasionally traveled as far as Canada to play. Lucivero went on to explain that the fellows are currently putting together a national tour that will tentatively kick off in March of 2008, visiting Texas, Georgia, Florida and Washington D.C., among other locations. For now,the band is excited to come back to Worcester and play to a hometown crowd. “We love music and we just want everyone to have a good experience when they come to see us live,”McEachern said of their upcoming Tammany Hall performance, where they’ll be playing with Auburn-based band The After Hour. The Saturday, Dec. 22, event is an 18-plus show and costs $5 at the door. “It’s just more about having a good time,” Battey said,“it’s about the vibe of the night.” He continued,“Come check us out if you like good music… it’s always a good night.”

BRIGHTON, Mass. — After five years of making music, The Wandas recently took their musical career to the next level. Over a span of two days, the four band mates worked together to create their very own music video for their latest single, ‘Thank You Note.’ The upbeat lyrics describe how the band received family, friends and new people into their Brighton home. Keith McEachern, Brent Battery, Pete McElholm and Ross Lucivero welcomed anyone and everyone into their home to take part in their debut music video. As soon as I walked in the door I was warmly welcomed by McElhom, the band’s lively drummer. Though I only came to cover the shoot, he convinced me to be an extra in the video along with 100 others. Ross at video shoot Bassist Ross Lucivero at video shoot “We really wanted to get as many people as possible from different backgrounds to be in the video,” he said. “Everyone is welcome.” It was hard to distinguish a rowdy music video was being filmed inside the unassuming three-story home. Walking down the street in search of the shoot, I expected to immediately identify which house was the site of the shoot, with only the sounds of birds chirping and cars passing filling the air. Once I entered through the door marked “WANDAS Video Shoot,” it was a different scene altogether. In the living room, extras took part by singing-along while listening to the song and reading a copy of the lyrics. With the song on repeat for most of the day, it was certainly hard to forget the catchy lyrics. Family and friends mulled about between the living room and kitchen, all showing their support. Originally from Worcester, McEachern, McElholm and Lucivero had friends and family travel to take part in the band’s big day. While McElholm and Battery organized extras downstairs assigning numbers and handing out lyrics, lead singer McEachern and bassist Lucivero directed the video shoot in a bedroom three flights up a winding staircase. Walkie-talkies in hand, they signaled downstairs when they were ready for a new extra. In the small room, a large professional camera faced a stool in the middle of the room. Bright lights facing the stool were certainly intimidating. I immediately regretted my decision to take part. As I sat in the chair with all eyes, a camera and blinding lights facing me, I waited for Keith’s cue to begin. But once the song played and the camera rolled, I felt right at home. With large cue cards to guide me through the song, Keith danced around the room encouraging me to do the same. In an instant, my nerves disappeared and I became part of the video. To accompany the theme of the song, extras were asked to write a short thank you note to whomever they pleased: “To all my friends, and all my acquaintances, I wanted to share my feelings with you…” With two full days of shooting extras for the video, The Wandas were excited to step in front of the camera to do what they do best. After all the extras had sung-along to the four minute song, the Wandas dressed up and performed as if they were on stage at one of their regular gigs. “We’re really excited about making our first video,” McElhom said. “It’s been really fun.”