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Wisely - A Laid Back Alternative Rock Album from the Male Fe

Mark | East Coast | 03/13/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"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."

Haunting Beauty

Brad Baker | Atherton, Ca United States | 01/19/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"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."

Really good cd

Kendra | 03/10/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"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."