Reviews for "Wishing Well Eyes":

NOT LAME
A most beguiling and rewarding album for fans of some classic, more obscure(at least now) sounds of the mid/late 80`s; we`re talking bands like The Feelies, The Housemartins, Lovetractor, The Smiths, Miracle Legion, Kiwi bands like The Chills and The Bats and The Field Mice. At its base, the songs here are driven by acoustic guitar interplay warmly blending with the electric weaving, darting in and out of the action---which works perfectly with the sunny, positivism on "Wishing Well Eyes". There`s a deceptive musical sophistication that lies beneath the laid-back ambience. It`s deceptive in its subtlety, while keeping a `back porch`, informal, friendly sound. Each listen reveals new pleasures and layers to enjoy. Very Highly Recommended!

HIGH BIAS
Wishing Well Eyes contains another batch of 80s-informed, pop-giddy guitar songs. Leader Wallace Dietz's dry voice and ringing acoustic guitar frame his ultra-melodic, tastefully positive tunes; the rest of the band gives the tracks just enough thrust to keep things moving. "A Trip to the Country," "November Woods" and "Johnny is Cool!" will make fans of bands like the Black Watch and For Against smile, and the Feelies tribute "Crazy Rhythms" is a nice, clever touch. Michael Toland

UNDER BLUE SKIES
Remember the jangly days of Postcard Records, Creation, C86, Sarah & a whole lot more? Just mix it with the new world order of indie-pop and you'll get this great but hard to see band called the Silent Boys (remember them?). They have been playing cool music in the past decades & have been on various compilations ("Seven Summers" on Tweenet Communications/Kindercore, "Will There Be Time For Tea?" on Morgan Leah and "You Thought It Was The End Of The World When The Rain Ruined Your Hair" on Firestation Records) and they released their highly acclaimed debut, "Beauty Tips" back in 2004 to the janglepop hungry fans all over the globe.

If you loved Felt, McCarthy, Mighty Mighty, Brideshead, Den Baron, The Go-Betweens, Adorable, New Order, Echo & The Bunnymen and other fine acts, you'll love them! But hey wait! It's not endin' there as the long wait is over- the band has just released a new LP! Yes, not a single song nor a best of but a NEW LP full of jangly P!O!P! tunes titled "Wishing Well Eyes" still on Walrus Records. With it's founder and leader Wallace Dietz leading the way & the two other permanent members of the band still on board (bassist and lead guitarist) John Suchocki and (drummer) John Morand, the Silent Boys will be ringing our heads with their guitar oriented pop songs!

DAGGER
Wallace Dietz has been creating music as The Silent Boys from his home in Virginia for many years now but his debut cd wasn’t until a few years ago. That record, BEAUTY TIPS was 9 solid slices of jangle pop with a slight undercurrent of the Factory Records rhythms (you know what I mean). He’s written 11 songs this time (w/ the same lineup including semi-famous Virginian John Morand who twisted some knobs in the studio for Honor Role, among others) and the songwriting is better and seems more confident. The rasp of “Sleepy Head” reminded me of early (read: good) Psycedelic Furs while the title track was something that could have appeared on one of those early , great Sarah Records comps. There seems to be a never-ending supply of marvelous hooks here and that’s the sort of thing that keeps me listening over and over. Tim Hinely

INDIEPOP.IT (Italian)
Sono sempre loro i Silent Boys, quelli che il prode Alessandro qui sotto metteva in competizione (addirittura) con Beethoven? Sì che lo sono: ad oggi, per esempio, è impossibile trovare traccia di questo nuovo "Wishing Well Eyes" sul sito della band, che ancora pubblicizza l'album di due anni or sono (ma dico, cos'altro deve fare il sito di una band se non presentare il nuovo album?). E se avete lasciato la Nona a metà, è probabile che vi sentirete ancora in colpa (a prescindere dai Silent Boys, sia chiaro). Ma i sintomi più importanti, quelli sono cambiati per il meglio: a rivelarlo senza sottintesi è la traccia sette, titolata "Crazy Rhythms" come il primo e indimenticato album dei Feelies, che provvede a scapicollarsi morbida lungo distese di chitarre in un modo che sarebbe piaciuto a Mercer e Millions e scioglierà il cuore di chi si era innamorato di quella improbabile band. E così come è difficile ancora oggi spiegare la grandezza dei Feelies (nerdy, nervous and noisy dice allmusic, e non è abbastanza), il secondo album dei più modesti Silent Boys pone la band nello stesso limbo misterioso ed affascinante. Gli echi Felt del passato sono tutt'altro che scomparsi, ma sostanziati e spodestati da un impenetrabile lavoro di accordi, nei solchi irregolari della title-track, negli accordi intrecciati dalla splendida "November Woods" che congiurano un country immaginato e trasfigurato, come i Byrds in viaggio negli anni 80 neopsichedelici. Certo la band asseconda il proprio background indiepop cercando con ostinazione una melodicità non in totale accordo con la musica, che tende invece ad una peculiare angolarità (ritmi folli, appunto): emergono pezzi sfiancanti o scarsamente a fuoco, nei quali gli arabeschi di accordi predominano sulla canzone in se', ma conta poco, di fronte alla solidità di chitarre capaci di avvolgere tutto il lavoro in un enorme e caloroso abbraccio. E se serve una dimostrazione pratica esibirò le stimmate lasciate da "Never Fall In Love Again" sui miei bilbi auricolari, ai quali la propongo con allarmante frequenza. D'altra parte "Wishing Well Eyes" dispensa personalità a piccole ma inesorabili dosi; è un disco per iniziati costruito con attenzione ed amore, offre la calda confidenza del già noto e sorprende con un'inventiva che credevamo sepolta, acquistando ulteriore valore con tempo e frequentazione. Mi chiedo se i novizi ne trarranno altrettanto godimento. Dovrebbero. Salvatore

FUFKIN
An album that is brimming with jangly, strummy pop that is reminiscent of the Trash Can Sinatras and the Field Mice. The title track is the highlight among the eleven songs. Eric Sorensen THE INDIE PAGES Although the band has existed in some form or another for over a decade, this is only their second album (with the first one released only a couple years ago). And like the first record, the songs on this record sound like they could've been recorded about twenty years ago. Taking the jangly, acoustic-based sound of the Bats or the Smiths, combined with guitar (and bass) parts similar to the fluid melodies of Felt and a voice that reminds me of Glen Melia of St. Christopher, the Silent Boys bring us back to the time when heavy rock was out of vogue and melody and grace reigned supreme. When the band does turn up their guitars a bit on "Johnny Is Cool", it sounds a bit out of place on this record, but not for the time period (think maybe the Chameleons or Big Dipper). Like the previous record, the songs do tend to be a touch long-winded at times (most are over four minutes long), but rarely are they so long as to overstay their welcome. All around, a bit of an improvement over their last record!

APPLE ORCHARD
The Silent Boys were only idle about two years and now has issued their second full-length, Wishing Well Eyes. These not-too-quiet-but-not-too-loud-either boys are from Virginia and according to Poppolar have been playing together for about ten years. It kind of makes me wonder. Anyhow. The Silent Boys take their cue from '80's jangle pop bands like The Servants and I actually mistook them for one when I first heard their debut, Beauty Tips, about a year and a half ago. Wishing Well Eyes takes up from where their debut left off though for a moment or two, it reminds me a little bit of the Math And Physics Club, like in "November Woods". But with better lyrics, which on the other hand is quite similar to the wordy playfulness of The Lucksmiths. My favorite is the title track with lines that go "I'm Fred and you're Ginger, dancing to a waltz in swing time; our feet are so light that we're skittering like waterbugs" and "We spent last night tightrope-walking on a moonbeam; we lassoed the moon and we tied it to the bedpost". I wish I could write like that. They do wear their influences on their sleeves, too; namedropping The Feelies on "Crazy Rhythms": "Your thoughts are racing too fast for your words, so you put on The Feelies' first record; you're dancing in epileptic twitches (an Ian Curtis reference perhaps?) and all of your worries dissapate." The quartet's unassuming and clean jangle recalls The Bats' At The National Grid as well. Highly recommended for jangle pop fans!
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