Chuck Whyard’s C-Wired release LP
SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/album/1Con8XGgrry6fIuSUb2WrA
Fans of rock and country alike are going to love what Chuck Whyard’s C-Wired have cooked up in their debut extended play Omega, which in itself provides exactly what 2018 was lacking in terms of mainstream crossover appeal. In each of the six songs contained in Omega, listeners are treated to a different side of Whyard’s multidimensional concept, which is by far one of the most ambitious and elaborately constructed vehicles I’ve had the pleasure of reviewing the last couple of years. C-Wired effectively takes simple songs and manipulates them into carefully arranged sonic juggernauts, adding a touch of flavor and spice as needed along the way. Their sound is their own, and it couldn’t have been more efficiently presented than in the form of this awesome EP.
Omega is the kind of record that transcends multiple eras without feeling like a retrospective piece. Over the course of its six tracks, we’re exposed to the ebb and flow of a myriad of pop accents; from countrified Americana to straight up grungy dirge, Omega is almost like listening to a reflective anthology of every stylish element that has made the American songbook so exciting in the last half century. It’s a timeless narrative, and one that has evaded the consciousness of most of Whyard’s closest rivals for reasons that I can’t even fathom. C-Wired aren’t breaking ground on any watershed moments in rock n’ roll, but they’re certainly re imagining the concept of melody in the most fascinating way possible.
Songs like the title track fuse cerebral harmony into folk music’s organic simplicity in a way that is strikingly different from more atmospheric post-rock bands. There’s a big emphasis on tonality above everything else for C-Wired, and Omega flows with the same pace as a calculated concerto piece; evenly and with plenty of patience.
C-Wired’s debut album is without question one of the most exciting releases of the year, and I personally cannot wait to see how the band develops in their next release. When you’re a band that doesn’t have a typical sound and doesn’t cling to any one trend in pop culture over another, the possibilities are literally endless when crafting your identity and aesthetic persona. I’m very curious to see how a record like Omega would translate in a live setting and whether or not C-Wired would maintain the same textured mayhem that it unleashes in the studio. I’m sure I’ll have the opportunity to find out at some point in the near future, and no matter what comes next for this band you can bet I’ll be writing about it.
SOUNDCLOUD: https://soundcloud.com/user-183573562/sets/omega/s-faLPp
Mindy McCall
