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Sep 3, 2013John Wizards is, to paraphrase the anthropologist Claude Levi-Strauss' opinion on animals, "good to think with." But that won't make people want to listen to it. What will is its hip diversity, sunny disposition, and the fact that Withers never asks more of his audience than he's willing to give: A man of contract, he puts his clients first.
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Oct 29, 2013John Wizards contains a surplus of happiness spilling out all over the place, but there is also a haunting sadness on many of these tracks, one often turning on a dime into the other.
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MojoOct 16, 2013Every one of its 15 tracks brings something new to the table. [Nov 2013, p.90]
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Sep 3, 2013There’s so much packed into these 15 lush, context-evading songs, though, that map references are pretty futile.
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Sep 3, 2013Whether John Wizards’ debut album has lasting power is impossible to know, but for the moment, they’ve wholly succeeded in at least making something to appreciate.
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Dec 3, 2013You'll be treated to one of the most exciting debuts of the year--a consistently surprising and joyous album, which only improves with each listen.
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Aug 30, 2013It's guileless, naive music, with melodies that shyly curl up to you, or, as on glorious earworm iYoungwe, strut with the adorably ungainly confidence of juvenile mammals.
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Aug 30, 2013John Wizards is a sonic journey both geographically and temporally, without being an exercise in musical channel surfing.
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Aug 30, 2013If the sign of a good LP is no standout tracks then John Wizards is certifiably brilliant, a collage of brightly-coloured chamber pop where modern synths get a look-in too.
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Aug 30, 2013Its stylistic diversity can be off-putting at first. But the more you listen, the more it all comes together.
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Aug 30, 2013There’s a lot to like about this summer soundtrack packed to the left of your luggage.
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MagnetSep 20, 2013This is music that's instantly, wordlessly evocative while also invitingly open-ended. [No. 102, p.57]
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Sep 20, 2013With John Wizards, Nzaramba and Withers have arrived.
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Sep 12, 2013For a jingle writer whose album is almost relentlessly upbeat, his music can cut surprisingly close to the bone.
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Sep 3, 2013As it is now, John Wizards is an effortlessly fun, pan-global pop record that stands on its own, no qualification needed.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 4 out of 5
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Mixed: 0 out of 5
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Negative: 1 out of 5
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Sep 5, 2013