Search - Utah Carol :: Wonderwheel

Great CD!

Vincent E. Vizachero | Houston, TX United States | 03/16/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I'll admit up front that I bought this CD because I figure any band who took their name from a Marty Robbins tune couldn't be all bad. I was not disappointed.The musical style of Utah Carol is a bit tough to pin down (think equal parts Simon & Garfunkel and Poi Dog Pondering, with a little Johnny Cash thrown in for fun). Nonetheless, the sound is fun, playful, and honest. The arrangements are a bit simple, but there is enough talent here to carry the album.The CD comes off as unpretentious and charming, which I suspect is the intent. The lyrics are straight up, yet well-crafted. There is nothing here that makes me scream "I wish I wrote that" but neither are there any embarrassments. There are enough interesting turns of phrase and arrangements to convince me that the band has plenty more to offer as they grow.Still, this is a heck of a debut. This album will get plenty of play in my house, and this band will be one to watch."

Venture into Wonderwheel

splendidezine.com | splendidezine.com, USA | 09/27/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I like it when a band takes me completely by surprise. Case in point: the opening moments of Wonderwheel suggest that Utah Carol is another starkly melodic alt-country duo...but such is not the case. If Wonderwheel is an alt-country album, it's an alt-country album produced by Van Dyke Parks...which is a pretty interesting concept in itself.There's a strong, strong pop aesthetic at work here amid all the twang. It's evident in the lush sophistication of the melodies -- "Charmed Life", for instance, adds multiple layers of vocal and instrumental harmony, giving the song a lingering presence. The gentle "Bluejay" enhances Jinja Davis' sing-song vocals with a pervasively bouncy organ drone. "9:09" borrows its rhythm from reggae, then Americanizes it with vocal layers and Hammond flourishes, while the overtly twangy "Buffalo" goes for Beach Boys-style harmonies.The deeper you venture into Wonderwheel, the less you're certain what to expect. "Cluttered Mind" goes straight for jaunty psychedelia. "Saying Grace" is a comfortable piece of country pop, but the modest R&B vibe of "Turn My Way" will make you check to see if an Apples in Stereo CD has found its way into the CD player. "Me and You," will further confuse you, as Davis' breathy lyrical delivery is buoyed by vibraphone and keyboard (or some similar combination of ringing tones). You won't find that sort of stuff on most of your bog-standard alt-country CDs. The jarring keyboard sequence that ends the album puts everything in perspective: Utah Carol like to keep you guessing, and sometimes they like to give you a jolt.As much as I enjoyed Wonderwheel, I found it guilty of a degree of "kitchen sink-ism". There are perhaps twelve fully fleshed-out tunes here, punctuated by numerous instrumental tracks. The instrumentals present Utah Carol at their most aggressively genre-bending -- they dabble with funk on "Miles", cowboy-western themes on "Toy Train" and make mountain-goat leaps between indie pop, hip-hop and JSBX-style blues on "Swingset". A few of these pieces seem like they were included on the album just because they were there, but many present such winning concepts that I wish they'd been developed further. Grant Birkenbeuel and Jinja Davis make effective counterpoint vocalists, and I would like to have heard them take greater advantage of their unique vocal mixture by adding shared vocals to more of these pieces. In particular, I'd like to see what Jinja could do with some of the more beat-intensive tracks.But at least Utah Carol kept me guessing. And when you're reviewing six or seven albums a week, a little surprise goes a long way."

Double U, Oh, Double U

W. K. Aiken | 12/30/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Wow. This is one of the best recordings I have heard in a long time. If you want to hear a band that sounds like the Spinnanes meet Uncle Tupelo then buy this cd. The best money you'll spend this year."