Your Favorite New Band

Imagine combining The Posies, Fountains of Wayne and Oasis. Sounds pretty good, right? Well, let me introduce you to your favorite new band, Yours & Mine. A power-pop/rock trio, whose new album The Shadow You Cast is easily one of my favorites this year and has a real late 80’s/early 90s college radio feel. But we’ll get to that soon. I had the chance to catch-up with guitarist/lead singer Greg Baldwin recently.

The New York trio consisting of Baldwin along with Kris Hayes on bass and Dan Wintersteen on drums came together after Baldwin’s band These Animals fizzled out around 2015. Originally a quartet with guitarist Will Farr (who eventually moved to Minnesota), the band recorded and released their self-titled EP in 2017. 

The new album has been a long time in the making. “Some of these songs date back as far as 2014, and many were written during a difficult breakup,” said Baldwin. The band started tracking drum and bass parts back in 2018, but Baldwin put the project on the shelf as he felt his guitar overdubs weren’t up to snuff. Then things happened - a new job, his mother’s death, marriage, Covid, moving, two kids - “WHAT? Where did the time go?”. With Hayes moving to North Carolina and Wintersteen across the Hudson River in Rockland County, NY, Baldwin got settled in upstate New York, setting up a home studio and he finished what had started years ago.

The Shadow You Cast is all about big riffs, sing-along choruses in songs that are quick, catchy and will stick with you for a long time. The songs are relatable with themes of love, loss and “that jukebox in the back that plays a melody, of that old romantic tune that she would sing to me”. 

The opening track (from where I pulled the jukebox lyrics), “I’m Not Ready to Go” is a perfect way to kick things off. Straight ahead power pop that drips sentimental feelings of staying up all night. Up next is one of my favorites from the album, “Pushing Up Daisies” a high-energy rock song (and also one of Baldwin’s favorites). “It’s totally inspired by 90s alternative, like Fountains of Wayne and Oasis,” said Baldwin. He remembered hearing the phrase “pushing up daisies” and thinking it would make a great lyric. “It refers to being dead and buried, which I thought would be an interesting way to talk about how life is short and you should make the most of your time.”

Maybe the most personal song is “Wedding Vow”. While he’s proud of all his songs and lyrics, “Wedding Vow” is very personal. “Writing it was like therapy for me during the breakup. The line ‘Maybe your words are wasted on a wedding vow…maybe those days are numbered for you anyhow’ still stand out.”

Up next is “Shadow” where the band brings a little British rock into it (think Oasis) with a harder edge and attitude. “I love the wordplay on ‘Shadow’ where I link colors to emotions,” said Baldwin. “‘Tell me what you’ve seen, with your eyes of green. Is it love or is it jealousy that’s blind?’”. 

When you get deeper into the album, there’s some punk-ier and British new wave vibes (think The Jam) with songs like “Keep On” and the closing track “Gimme Gimme Rock & Roll” which we should all turn up to eleven and crack out our car windows. 

After playing three shows last month, what’s up next for the trio? “We are planning to record our next EP in November/December,” said Baldwin. And while the members are in different zip codes, making live shows tricky, they’re hoping the recent gigs will give them a push to make it happen more often. I second that, as everyone who loves rock and roll should see this band. In the meantime, we can bask in the greatness of The Shadow You Cast from your favorite new band.