“All of Me” by Watashi Wa, Tuesday, April 9, 2024 (updated repost)

Watashi Wa was a band signed to Tooth & Nail Records in the early '00s. The band was formed in 2000 when the members were still in high school. After releasing two albums on Bettie Rocket, a small label, the band signed to Tooth & Nail in 2002. The next year, they released their LP The Love of Life. The band broke up two years later and singer Seth Roberts went on to form the band Eager Seas. Roberts negotiated with the label to fulfill Watashi Wa's contract with his new band; however, Eager Sea's debut record undersold the label's expectations. The label decided to re-release the record as Watashi Wa's final album titled Eager Seas, including the band's most recognized song "All of Me" on the record. Roberts went on to form the band Lakes and signed to The Militia Group.  

IT WAS WRITTEN IN A LETTER TO ME. Maybe it was an abundance of incredible releases in 2003 that made Watashi Wa's The Love of Life fall unnoticed from the shelf. I hadn't even heard of Watashi Wa until I saw the band appear on a Tooth & Nail sampler given away with Further Seems Forever How to Start a Fire, and I bought the album at a discount several years after its release. In 2003, Tooth & Nail alone had released Anberlin's and Mae's debut albums, Beloved, Lucerin Blue, the first FM Static record, Spoken's  A Moment of Imperfect Clarity, and Thousand Foot Krutch's Phenomenon. There were other Christian albums that I bought that year, too, like Skillet's Collide, Big Dismal's only album, and Delirious's Touch. Then there was Evanescence's Fallen, which I also bought in the Family Christian store before it was removed. Maybe also there was a lack of promotion. The band didn't have a Christian Rock radio single unlike most of the bands listed. Years later, Watashi Wa's music is fine. They are a mellower Tooth & Nail band in a time when edgier pop-punk was what was making the label sore. Seth Roberts talked about his perspective of how his band fit into the arc of Tooth & Nail's success on the Labeled podcast. Roberts talks about how he tried to make music that paid tribute to his musical heroes in Tooth & Nail history but ultimately failed to produce a record that drew the attention to make a profit for the label. Now sixteen years later, Watashi Wa is back with another tribute to Tooth & Nail’s glory days. I hope that this time around the band will get the recognition they deserve.

MAYBE IT'S CRAZY. Seth Roberts has told the story of Watashi Wa’s first run on Tooth & Nail Records on several podcasts, such as Labeled. The band recorded The Love of Life with legendary producer Gggarth, known for his work with Kiss, Rage Against the Machine, and Red Hot Chili Peppers, and later for recording other Tooth & Nail albums such as Beloved’s Failure On and The Orange County Supertones’ Chase the Sun. The band hadn’t even signed with Tooth & Nail Records but the label had enabled the band to record their album before signing the contract. Watashi Wa was a band at the beginning of Tooth & Nail’s imperial era when the label had money to spend on up-and-coming bands. But with this new ear, calm bands faired not as well as heavy bands. On labeled, Roberts talked about the band’s lack of bands willing to tour with a calmer band being a factor in the eventual demise of Watashi Wa, though band members leaving in pursuit of personal goals was also a contributing factor. Roberts revived the band in 2022 and after People Like People, the band is planning to release new music soon.

Read the lyrics.