Customer Reviews

Wisely

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I listen to a LOT of new music. You can check out my list of favorite alternative albums for 2007 alone as a testament.

That's why it surprised me that I hadn't heard Wisely before this.

The musicianship isn't earth shattering and the songs aren't catchy enough to appeal to the mainstream. But for this mix of alternative / rock /folk, this album nails it.

Most mellow alt rock / emo has a hint of depression to it. This is the first album in this group that I've heard in a real long time that didn't have any negative vibe to it. Just well written songs delivered spot on.

Wisely has a great voice and never over does the vocals. The lyrics are interesting and well thought out, in many ways better than a lot of Feist The Reminder (who tends to oversimplify in a poppy way). I call him the male Feist because of the whole "band named after the lead singer" thing, as well as the simple melodies they seem to share. There's a splash of Coldplay Coldplay - A Rush of Blood to the Head, Spoon Girls Can Tell, The Wallflowers Bringing Down the Horse, Wilco Sky Blue Sky and Ida Heart Like a River thrown in there too. If you like those bands you will probably like this too. Not to mention, it sounds like something that could have been thrown on the Juno soundtrack Juno.

Comparing this to the more electronic / fusion / experimental bands is comparing apples to oranges. This is different music for a different audience. I for one am glad I found this and will be listening to this lots.

Check this out and you won't be disappointed. Comparing this to classic singer songwriters alone doesn't do it justice. Alternative rock has come a long way when real songs can be released by a record label without the boring repetitive hooks that are usually required.

Enjoy.

Music is a kind of magic. It is the antidote for civilization. It's gets you through. "Wisely"'s new CD gets you through. Willie Wisely is no superstar, but his musical footprint is long. The Minneapolis wunderkind was doing live shows back in the early 1990's. In 1994 he released the Willie Wisely Trio album. A solo effort appeared in 1996, and another in 1997. Two CD,s came out in 2003 and 2006 under the title of just Wisely.
This is the third. Fans say it's the best. They're right. Here is the haunting bass-driven "It's Gonna Be Beautiful". And there's the gentle, simple rock-ballad "Tokyo Arbor" : "Another winter time on Tokyo Arbor. Twin waterfalls split the icy jade. Snow flakes vanish into blackened water. Another year I'll wait for you to change your ways". There's heightened poetry and old-fashioned, brilliant rock-and-roll, as in "I'll Be Singing". "Cracked World View" tells us: "And every day I grow a little bit farther from you". No, not such happy songs, but songs about life, from someone who's lived it. "Wisely" benefits from being recorded, in part, in Los Angeles' famous Laurel Canyon. You can see Wisely's new video on U-Tube, "Through Any Window". My favorite track is "Vanilla", an exceptional riff with electric guitar by Rusty Anderson, who's real name is Paul McCartney.

It's always fun to hear new music that's not completely derivative of everybody else out there now. This cd was surprisingly good-- much better than I expected since I had no positive expectations at all. As a matter of fact, the cynic in me expected to positively dislike it (at the time of ordering, there were no sample tracks available and I received the cd as a sample to review).

However, the music is catchy and memorable. And, like the editorial review here states, Wisely sounds quite a bit like the Finn brothers. Maybe a bit like Crowded House, too, in some places. And a bit like Jude, too. But, the cd also has its own sound-- and really, I don't think he sounds anything like Paul McCartney at all. I've read all the reviews that compare this to Paul McCartney and even James Taylor. I hear nothing that is reminiscent of either. The only thing I can think of is that it's catchy pop music-- like Paul McCartney makes (however, I don't really like Paul McCartney and I do like James Taylor and this sounds nothing like James Taylor, either).

One of the reviewer's here complained that Wisely's voice was actually off-key. I just don't hear it-- and I've been playing music for years and can definitely hear when someone is off-key. Wisely's just not off-key. His voice is perfectly listenable.

It's rare to find albums these days that resonate with a sound that I can only describe as pure and honest. The songs on this album don't try to dress themselves up or be something they're not. They simply flow with a mellow and consistent aura that in many ways bears the writer's soul. Now, I don't mean to get all philosophical on you, but I guess what I mean is that some songs and albums have "heart" and some just don't. This album has heart. Wisely has been compared to Paul McCartney, and I understand why. Another artist that comes to mind while I was listening was James Taylor. I think the songs that really work are the ones that had really nice acoustic guitar compositions... songs 3, 8, 11, and 12 come to mind. By far, my favorite song on the album was "Ella", number 8 on the CD. The best way I can describe this song is if "The early Beatles" did a "Spaghetti Western" soundtrack... with a modern twist, that's probably what it would sound like. It also has the simple,
catchy, and heartfelt lyrics that really make it an amazing gem of a song. Yes, that's the "pure goodness" that I was referring to and it surely makes this CD worth listening to.

I've always been one of those people who learns about music from TV and radio. I hear one song I like and somehow end up with a whole CD, and if I like that, all the CD's the band has ever made. And I stay faithful. But with amazon vine offering CD's to be reviewed I decided to take a chance and see if I could randomly pick something that would appeal to me.

I didn't especially expect to enjoy this CD, mostly because I had never, ever, heard of the artist(s?) involved. But the second the vocals burst forth on the first track (On my Way) I was hooked into the music. Yes, it's fairly typical of the more alternative pop today (A little Train, a little Maroon Five and even a tiny bit of some of my person favorites Nine Days and the unavoidable Beatles influence) but it manages to ring true and break through into your mind with catchy tunes and words.

Sadly after the first track the songs become somewhat repetitive and annoying. Amongst the whole CD I couldn't find one song that I thought really stood out.

But I didn't hate it, or like it much. So three stars.

I got this CD and have tried listening to it three or four times so I can write a review, but each time it sort of slides into the background of my mind. I just can't focus on it! Nothing stand-outish about it - but also, nothing jarring or unpleasant. I'd have to give it a straight 3 stars for being rather average.

Wisely has a pleasantly forgettable singing voice. There is absolutely nothing distinctive about his vocal stylings on this album. I don't mind it, but I can't say I'm struck particularly by it.

This album wanders around aimlessly through a dozen 3-4 minute lightweight pop tunes. Even after repeated listenings, I have a hard time recalling any specifics. The songs are melodic, but not in any memorable way.

There is a charming off-handedness that makes a number of the songs somewhat enjoyable. The opening song, "On My Way", has a nice feel. "It's Gonna Be Beautiful" has a relatively catching chorus (and some electric guitar that kind of approaches a rock sound). The folky acoustic-driven "Through Any Window" is another highlight.

If you like ultra-light pop with a lazy feel, this isn't half bad. I had a tough time getting into it though. I'm a gargantuan McCartney fan, and noticed that this music has been called McCartneyesque. I have to disagree for the most part - though Rusty Anderson, who is a guitarist in Paul's touring badn - plays on a track. I also noticed that Tommy Barbarella plays keyboards on a number of tracks - he used to be a member of Prince's backing band in the mid-90s. That's pretty cool.

I have played this CD numerous times since the tunes are soft and easy to listen to while working at the computer. Luckily it has not worn out yet. None of the songs jump out as a favorite one, but for once I did not get a CD for a specific song and not enjoy the rest. There are no songs on this CD that I do not like. Wisely's lyrics seem heartfelt and his voice is soft and somewhat soothing as is the accompanying music. So if you are looking for easy listening music this is the one to buy.

This is an enjoyable album. Every note and every musician is proficient and the production values are high. Yet when I play this on a rotation, the songs fail to pop out, and become a little bit background, a bit soft-pop. Inoffensive? Well done? Sorta pretty good? Better than most albums? This is a decent and fun album... if damning with faint praise bothers you, I have a truckload of faint praise for this album.

William Wisely Jr. is a fine talent; an excellent lyricist, a writer of lilting tunes, and a good singer with a timbre and range that reminds me of Paul McCartney (Wisely admits to Beatlemania since he was 12). This is a quality CD. Maybe not a great one, but a very pleasant and appealing one, and I'm not easily pleased, especially with the current stuff that I hear on music award shows, etc. Wisely's biggest strength is probably in his ability to tell a story within the structure of a song. He'd probably make a really good novelist or poet.

This is a very well produced CD; there's a laid back simplicity to all 12 songs, and Wisely either wrote all or co-wrote all 12 numbers. The simplest of them all is by far my favorite, "Through Any Window," which just has Wisely accompanying himself on acoustic guitar (and playing very well I might add), and I would really enjoy an entire album of music along the lines of "Through Any Window." Play this CD more than once before you make up your mind. It grows on you. Total running time is 43:58.