Tuesday, April 17, 2012

THE WANTED - "THE EP" REVIEW


The Wanted - The EP
It's been a while since Pop Music has been this exciting and the British Boy Band Duel building between imports One Direction and The Wanted is igniting the spirit of competitiveness which makes Fans and Haters out of all of us.  Regardless which end of the Spectrum you situate yourself, by the end of the Summer it will be impossible to ignore either Band. Although The Wanted already have released two full-length Discs in the UK, they now are being introduced to North America officially with seven tracks collectively packaged as The EP - a majority taken from their 2011 Disc Battleground. To put into perspective, think One Direction - but more emphasis on the Baritone, more singing in unison and edgier beats.

On paper, the ingredients are all there: great Looks, strong Tunes, solid Voices and that all-important Charisma which can be a deciding factor between which artists perform in Clubs and Theatres versus filling-up Arenas. Girls love Max, Nathan, Tom, Siva and Jay and if their recent arrival in Toronto is any indication of what's to come, The Wanted could well be what this generation needs so badly - their own New Kids on the Block or Backstreet Boys, for that matter.

Debut Single Glad You Came penned by Wayne Hector, Ed Drewett and Producer Steve Mac without a doubt has been unavoidable to anyone within an earshot of a Radio of late.  Its highly-singable Melody is a perfect introduction to the Market; it's "wo-oh" bits distinctively British, reminiscent of a Football Chant and not without charm.  Lightning penned by that same Trio showcases the Boys at their best vocally and is a definite standout on the Disc.  Second Single Chasing the Sun penned by Michael Woods and Elliot Gleave takes everything lovable about Glad You Came, but is even more focused on the Dancefloor.  Satellite earns Max, Nathan and Jay a Writing Credit in collaborating with ultra-hot Singer/Songwriter/Producer Ryan Tedder, yet is met only with mixed results when paired against some of the better Tracks on this Disc.  No Boy Band is complete without a Ballad and Heart Vacancy penned by Lucas Secon and Hector fills this void on this uptempo selection of Tunes.  Gold Forever is reminiscent of 1984 Alphaville Hit Forever Young and penned by Claude Kelly, Hector and Mac capping things off well enough to leave us wanting more.

The EP from The Wanted is just a taste of what's to come from this force to be reckoned with.  Universal Music Canada releases digitally and on CD Tuesday, April 24, 2012.

Enter to win a Photo signed by members of The Wanted here.