Customer Reviews

Wonderlick

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Tim Quirk and Jay Blumenfeld, the creative nexus behind Too Much Joy, are back as Wonderlick, aided by a stable of guest players and a drum machine.

The songs retain the melodic sense of Too Much Joy at its best, with Quirk's lyrics and distinctive voice enhancing the comparison. "Donner Lake," the lead track, is the most distinctive on first listen, but all of the tracks quickly become familiar.

TMJ's strength was always most noticeable in the intelligent lyrics that yield greater rewards with time, and Wonderlick offers that treasure just as generously. William Wittman's bass and Tommy Vinton's drums are noticeable in their absence, but this is as close to a TMJ comeback as we're likely to get.

I'm a huge Too Much Joy fan and was a little skeptical at first about new material coming out by Tim and Jay. But then it got to my house, I played it, and was blown away by how good it sounds. There's TMJ all over it yet it is a more modern, less brash version of them. They get into some sampling and effects which add to their new sound but there's still the loud guitars and choruses we love them for. And their lyrics are still full of irony and sarcasm, but there's a new heartfelt, dare I say "mature" side that's pretty cool. I was wondering if we would ever hear from them again and my friends (and fellow TMJ fans) are thrilled by what they've accomplished here. Favorites so far are "Black Box", "Hearts & Stars", and "Donner Lake". TMJ fans, buy this CD and remember that we're all a bit older and a bit wiser.