Stream: Ward, ‘Been Bad’

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Ward

Ward, the L.A. rock band fronted by tech industry executive-turned-musician Christopher Ward, ere one of the artists to have suffered the misfortune of releasing an album right before COVID-19 paralyzed the world. In their case, “Been Low” was released as the clock struck midnight and 2019 turned into 2020.

The quartet did not dally during the pandemic, writing, livestreaming, recording and releasing an EP in late 2020 and, last year, an album titled “Collaborations.” The latter featured 10 songs that saw Ward teaming up with a diverse batch of artists, including Mexico City’s Club Manchego, the Bay Area’s Lightnote1, Fresno’s Debi Ruud and L.A.’s Jules & the Howl. Now Ward and bandmates Mauricio Munguia, Chris Gongora and Ryan Dietzenbach are back with the new single, “Been Bad” (b/w “Because of You”).

As with most of their catalog, Ward align with the pop-friendly, commercial tip of post-punk and New Wave-inspired music. “Been Bad” is about finding a way to be good. “There’s a bubble in a cold sea / Breathing room around me / It’s pulling down the whole thing / And lifting up my debris,” Ward croons, determined not to succumb to insistent waves of temptation.

||| Stream: “Been Bad” and “Because of You”

||| Previously: “Bring Me Low,” “Sober,” “Stand Me,” “Crush”