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Posted - December 16  :  7:44:51 PM  

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Artist(s): The Wrenfields
Album: Seconds
Label: Self Released
Available: Available Now
Rating:
Review by: Doug Floyd

 

The Wrenfields, are a six piece alt.country band out of Dearborn, MI, that formed in 2000. Their music is a blend of styles that cross-pollinates the Jayhawks, early Wilco, and Dolly Varden. Designated the title of Detroit's "favourite alt-country group” this is their second album, the follow up to ‘21st Century Pioneer’ a rousing country debut that won the band many plaudits and considerable critical acclaim. Noreen Novrocki and drummer John Pyro share vocal duties, the remainder of the line up David Berriman, Frank Budd, Tom Morgan and Matt O’Bryan demonstrate considerable talent and together they build songs that are very arresting and instantly accessible. Lots of great hooks, stirring rhythms and a joyous feel is created, which immediately encourages you cue up the album for another listen, and another and another…
The production by Tyler Brown (Original Harmony Ridge Creekdippers) is clean and unfussy, letting the music do the talking and it is a very interesting and lively conversation indeed.

The album smoulders away to start, the songs are solid enough, “I felt Rain” three tracks in holds the country influence deeper into its heart after the country rock of “Every Know and Then” and “We Must say Goodbye” but it is “Carry me Away” that really sets the album alight. A wonderfully soaring country rock track with equal measures of everything that you would want or come to expect from a great song! Starting with a gently strummed resonator guitar, some cool and tender electric piano blends in before the song bursts like a firework into a gorgeously harmonised display of beauty…stunning. “Souvenir Smile” is up there with it as one of the top songs on the album, a powerful half ballad, with a tip in the direction of the Byrds, and Roger McGuinn's twelve string jangle. The guitar solo here is another example of the fine playing of Tom Morgan backed by Matt O’Bryan’s acoustic embellishment.

Novrocki has a really warm and (dare I say it) sexy voice which gives the band depth and variety, especially when she gets to take to lead on tracks like the uplifting “Gonna be Happy”- a real touch of summer for these cold Winter evenings. Pyro can really turn on the rock ‘n’ roll raunch when called for, “Lovesick” for example lets him rattle the vocal chords with a real slice of Stonesy riff 'n' roll to spur him on and “Worthless” supplies more of the same spirited attack.

One track that may garner some attention is the 9/11 song “Patriots Day” which may generate some criticism of jingoism with its obvious ‘up and at ‘em’ attitude:

“The sleepin’ giant wakes again
The sleepin’ giant wakes again
The sleepin’ giant wakes again
They’d better run, they’d better hide”

...Which is maybe not the subtlest reaction recorded post tragedy, but it is a point that echoes the sentiments of many and it is a very powerfully made statement, so I will leave that one up to the individual to decide upon. As a whole though this album is just a simple joy to experience and this one song, which I feel sits rather uncomfortably with the other ten on the album, should not be a deterrent for would-be buyers, just skip forward to something like “Mother Nature Girl” and more of Noreen Novrocki’s soaring vocals and things just fall back into place.

As a musician, if I could get to play in my ideal alt.country band, this is the kind of music I would love to play. There is a just enough twang and some great country edged rock. On the performance front, the guitar playing, rhythm section and vocals are gutsy but thoughtfully put together. The up tempo numbers are effervescent and captivating, full of energy with a solid rock resonance, especially when Pyro sets his vocals free and gives it some! Noreen’s (I feel we’re ready for first name terms, the amount of airplay I have given this) vocals are delightful, adding sparkle to an already luminous production. A thoroughly enjoyable album, warm and inviting, with lots of energy and one well worth tracking down.

Every Now and then
We Must say Goodbye
I felt rain
Carry me away
Patriot’s day (Katie bar the Door)
Gonna be Happy
Lovesick
Worthless
Souvenir Smile
Mother Nature Girl
Never Once Alone

THE WRENFIELDS Seconds... (self released) If country radio was really interested in playing real country music, country music that doesn't bow down to today's fads, it would be playing a Wrenfields song every hour. For their second CD, The Wrenfields improve mightily over their first, and that's not to say their first CD was bad, just a little unfocused and unrealized. You could hear the band was onto something, they just hadn't found a way to fully flesh out what they were going after. On this CD all the parts are in place and everything is just clicking along fine. To my ears, what makes the Wrenfields music so special is their mix of ancient and modern touches. Not only do they excel at bringing old-timey vocal elements and arrangements into their songs, they also succeed at bringing anough of the modern in to make it seem like a perfect hybrid of the two. If I were to make a comparison I would pick the bluegrass style band Nickel Creek. The same way Nickel Creek fuses the old and the new is the same way the Wrenfields do it, though with a more mountain music style touch than bluegrass. The mix of male and female vocals makes a nice blend as well. A little rock attitude is also there, setting off the old-timey elements just fine. Fans of all styles of country should find plenty to like here.

Their web site. Order from CDstreet.com  Reviewed by Scott Homewood

 

Wrenfields go a little bit country on 'Seconds'

Detroit Free Press - Greg Crawford

December 1, 2002

You hear it in the acoustic guitar, tight harmonies and homegrown twang that mark the first few bars of the infectious "Every Now and Then," the track that opens the Wrenfields' new album, "Seconds." The Dearborn-based alt-country band is gently nudging its sound toward traditional country.

"Seconds" is marked by touches of harmonica, mandolin, even dulcimer and banjo, and several tracks make liberal use of the pedal steel. Tyler Brown, noted for his work with alt-country band the Jayhawks and, more recently, Mark Olson and the Creekdippers, produced the album, and tracks like "We Must Say Goodbye" and "Never Once Alone" bring to mind some of Olson's warmer moments.

This is far from an all-country project, however. The classic rock sound that prevailed on much of "21st Century Pioneer," the Wrenfields' 2001 debut, survives on tracks like "Carry Me Away" and "Souvenir Smile," both of which stir fond memories of '70s radio, and the driving "Mother Nature Girl," which harkens back to early '80s new wave.

Most intriguing moment? The 9/11-inspired "Patriot's Day," which contains the America-first line: "Don't you let the world in anymore / Oh, Katie bar the door." Critics and academic types are all but certain to respond to the tune with the usual charges of jingoism and xenophobia. Music fans who've had enough of the thought police this year will likely render a more favorable verdict. By Greg Crawford, Free Press staff writer

The Wrenfields will perform at a CD-release party for "Seconds" at 9 p.m. Friday at Memphis Smoke, 100 S. Main, Royal Oak. 248-543-4300.

 

 

Wrenfields CD Release Party - Names and Faces - Detroit Free Press 11/28/02

 

 

 

November 20, 2002

The Wrenfields – Album – “Seconds” (Wrenfields Records, 2002) Available: Now Described by the Detroit Metro Times as the city’s “favourite alt-country group,” and recent winners of three Detroit Music Awards, the Wrenfields are obviously a love affair in the making for their hometown, and their debut from last year gave some indication of the good things ahead for the band – crisply produced, tightly arranged songs with at least man slaughtering if not killer hooks and just a nod to reverence, it turned a few heads in much the same way Nova Scotia’s Guthries’ debut did around the same time. Still, 18 months later, they’re back with an album, which is at least an equal for its predecessor, albeit one that doesn’t move the Wrenfields sound forward so much as it consolidates it.  It’s good to hear the variety still present from song to song on the record, thanks presumably to the spread of band members’ inclusion in the songwriting process. “Every Now and Then,” the album opener, feels punchy with its layers of twang and honky-tonk piano, and sublime harmony vocals, “We Must Say Goodbye” is basically a perfectly pitched bittersweet pop song with melancholic chord changes and “I Felt Rain” is a wry and really beautifully played piece of pure and focused Americana.  And that’s just the first three tracks – there’s actually on reflection a lot the band share in common with the Guthries, not just because of the band make-up but because of the seemless integration of the variety of musical styles into an album that never feels tacked together – it’s a complete project, and while they may not reach the giddy heights of the best of the Guthries, they still manage to map out a distinctive sound for themselves that will undoubtedly guarantee them more of the positive publicity they richly deserved for the debut.  It’s a shame that they chose to include an ill advised and overly aggressive 9/11 rant, “Patriot’s Day,” which is guaranteed to alienate most liberal UK listeners (“The God that made our country strong will lead our fight…” Toby Keith, eat your heart out), (no actually, please do eat your heart out) as it’s the only serious fly in the ointment of an otherwise not groundbreaking but still accomplished and warm record. MW