“Performances worthy of The Ryman on a steamy Saturday night ”
NEW RELEASES!
On March 26th, The Wanted released Strange Flight, a new collection of honest and gritty roots music.
As songwriters, The Wanted largely adhere to folk music’s storytelling tradition, albeit with modern inspiration. That’s certainly the case with Strange Flight’s title track, released on February 19th, a song Jeff wrote based on a disturbing dream Natalie had about a boy she once knew who committed suicide rather than expose the sexual abuse he’d experienced.
"The cinematic reverb weaves in and out of this harrowing story as Natalie’s voice rises to a cry of desperation— a standout mix of the traditional and modern." —Americana UK
“That song started really as a cry of frustration and anger at things in the past we can't change,” Jeff explains. “It also came at a time when I was listening to a lot of dark, ‘60s spaghetti western-influenced guitar music. I wanted the song to have a kind of a cinematic quality, which I thought suited the song’s emotional content.” Stream it here:
Before the Fall, the first single of the album, was released on January 22nd. It’s a “story” song with a strong narrative element. It’s penetrating, topical and a touch apocalyptical— a cry of frustration and anger at things we can't seem to change. The style could be described as idiosyncratic americana— an intersection between styles of fiddle music, Appalachian folk, jazz and blues, and The Wanted cross those genres, borders and traditions all the time. Before the Fall, with its strong melody and harmonies, pays homage to folk traditions but isn’t at all afraid to reconstruct them. Stream it here:
Stand Up is a plea for justice and the third single from Strange Flight, released on March 26th with the full album.
"The tempo has a menacing, bluesy vibe that powers Natalie’s anguished vocals." Americana UK
As Natalie says, “It’s a song about a young woman who fights back against an abusive partner to gain freedom and safety for herself and her children. I hope the song is a call to all women to fight back against abusers.” Stream it here:
Additional selected tracks from Strange Flight:
Get your digital copy or a CD of Strange Flight on Bandcamp and get a free download of Before the Fall! Click here:
“The harmonies might just send a shiver down your spine”
Selected tracks from the first Wanted CD:
Stream or Download the first Wanted CD on Bandcamp. Click here:
The Wanted fuse vintage North American folk, blues and country music with rockabilly, bluegrass and rock and roll in a distinctive roots music mash-up: The Carter Family meet Chuck Berry!
Tracks from Wanted CDs have aired on Stingray Music, CBC Radio 1 and many other roots music programs in Canada, throughout North America and around the world, and have tallied close to a half-million Spotify streams. There’s a small orchestra of instruments here that the band deploys with great skill, combining traditional instrumentation with unique elements such as washboard, bodhran, and acoustic lap steel guitar. The Wanted forge a fresh sound by finding common ground in diverse material.