In 1972, paleontologists Niles Eldredge and Stephen Jay Gould published a paper developing a new evolutionary theory called punctuated equilibria, suggesting that the constant, gradual evolution proposed by Charles Darwin rarely occurs in nature. Instead, they stated that periods of stasis were the norm and that evolutionary change occurs in punctuated periods of growth and development. Few musicians have left as significant a fossil record in the Ball of Wax strata as Louis O’Callaghan. Louis first appeared on 2005’s Ball of Wax Volume 2 under the name The Graze, with his song “Conditions.” When announcing the release show for 2011’s Ball of Wax Volume 24, Levi Fuller was already tipping his hat to Louis for his many contributions. The Graze had been “on volumes 2, 4, 6, and many more, up through 22.” Louis retired The Graze with Volume 24. On that compilation the first of many songs (see Balls of Wax 29, 33, 34, 36, 37, 50, 56, and 60) as Sun Tunnels is heard. On Ball of Wax Quarterly Volume 67, Louis returns with his band Sun Tunnels on the absolutely scorching number “Assad.”
It would be unfair to suggest any period of stasis or lack of growth is shown in Louis’s Ball of Wax output, but for the sake of allowing me to continue with the evolutionary biology metaphor let’s say that there is a quality, a tone that marks many a Ball of Wax song as distinctly Louis-y, whether appearing as The Graze, Sun Tunnels, or simply as Louis O’Callaghan. [Let’s not forget An Invitation to Love! And Lux Fontaine, who somehow never appeared on BoW. -ed] His guitar rhythms (except on 29), the space he creates between notes, his high-pitched, almost wounded vocals, and the clever lyricism are the DNA that is threaded across his catalog. There are amusing artifacts in the Ball of Wax archives supporting a parallel to the first part of Eldredge and Gould’s theory. In a 2005 footnote accompanying “Conditions,”, Louis himself wrote, “This is my rambling incoherent love song for the Bush Doctrine. Ain’t love grand? My next record will probably sound a lot like this track.” In his post for Ball of Wax 24, Levi commented on the transformation of The Graze to Sun Tunnels stating “it’s still very Graze-y, which is a great thing as far as I’m concerned.”
We do occasionally witness acute leaps of Louis’s evolution from one Ball of Wax release to the next associated with the second part of the punctuated equilibria theory, where the songs are familiar but elevated and transformed. Two stand out examples from distant releases are “Not Old,” a duet sung with Sarah McGuinn on Ball of Wax Volume 36 (2014) with an arrangement and a production that shine, where a simple guitar melody is slowly joined by a swelling of instruments to create a dreamlike wash as the pair of voices intertwine and twist like two strings being tied into an intricate knot; and Ball of Wax Volume 56’s “Brynn” (2019), in which a now rocking Sun Tunnels showcases a full-throated vocal boldness previously not heard from Louis. They are in the family of songs known to us as O’Callaghan’s, but they represent progressively larger steps ahead than usual.
Now there is “Assad.” While “Brynn” presented a confident Sun Tunnels, “Assad” gives us a daring, taunting, almost arrogant version of the band that propels them forward as the Cambrian explosion transformed life on earth. “Assad” is a banger, a bopper, a rocking jaw dropper. It represents a new stage for Louis and Sun Tunnels. With COVID hopefully evolving from a pandemic to an endemic disease, I hope to see and hear much more of this Sun Tunnels before their next adaptation.
