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| Tandem
- Canada's Cosmopolitan news, arts and sports paper After forming THE GREG WYARD BAND in Ottawa in 1996, this singer/songwriter relocated to Toronto in 2000. His gigs here have ranged from opening for STEELY DAN to impressing at a Bluebird North songwriters gig. His second independent CD, Something I Made Up, is a strong collection of nicely crafted and well-played melodic pop-rock songs. Greg's acknowledged influences include CROWDED HOUSE, ODDS and the BEATLES. Log onto www.gregwyard.com for more information. Kerry Doole |
Canadian
Musician Magazine
If your goal is to graduate from the University of Melodic Pop-Rock, the professors you want to study with are obvious: The Beatles, of course, and other tune-scholars like Crowded House's Neil Finn. These are the melody-masters Greg Wyard has obviously been studying, and by the sound of things, he's been getting straight A's. Originally from southern England, Wyard moved to Ottawa as a teenager and has spent the past 20 years becoming a fixture on the local music scene. In 1995 he formed a band and released his debut CD, appropriately titled The First. Very favourable press and local radio airplay soon followed, with songs placing first and third respectively in Ottawa and Toronto radio station-sponsored songwriting competitions. Relocating to Toronto, Wyard released his second album, Something I Made Up, in the spring of 2001. Taking a page from Professor Neil Finn's text, Wyard excels in writing melodies that are extremely catchy, yet sound completely natural amidst some wonderfully wily song structures, as found on the lead-off track, "Leave It Like That" and "Ready To Come Back Home". For Wyard, melody is king. "It's always the first thing when I'm working on songs," he says. "Usually the words come last, and it's usually just something that sounds like it fits the melody." No doubt he's heard all the puns: "Wyard for sound", "A Wyard World", etc. But that's okay, because now he can call himself Greg Wyard, TS.d. -- Doctor of Tunesmithology. |
| Toronto
Sun
GREG
WYARD Earlier this year, the British-born, Ottawa-raised singer-songwriter got the attention of Toronto radio when this indie outing's title track placed third out of 1,000 entries in MIX 99.9's songwriting competition. Wyard -- now settled in Toronto -- hopes the radio gods will catch on to the rest of this follow-up to his aptly titled 1998 debut, The First. With its nods to the smart-pop stylings of Squeeze and Crowded House, standout tracks A Likely Story and Ready To Come Back Home leave a pleasant light-rock aftertaste, yet are crafty enough to narrowly escape that 'carbon-copy-the-influences' tag. -- Ian Nathanson, Sun Media |
Former Ottawa club mainstay Greg Wyard may have moved to Toronto last year, but the British-born singer and songwriter never strays far from his capital roots (he recently performed on the Capital Music Conference stage at Ottawa Bluesfest and plays at the Black Sheep Inn in Wakefield Aug. 4). Wyard made his initial splash with The First in 1998 and this follow-up album again displays his easy knack for finding a pop hook while also boasting some very polished studio work with Jay Ruston of local Distortion Studios at the helm. None of this is groundbreaking material by any means, but every song is well executed and easy on the ears, particularly the title track and the melancholy She'll be There. Straightforward, melodic and eminently listenable stuff. |
| All
Music Guide AMG EXPERT REVIEW: The second album by this Toronto-area band is a perfect compliment to the understated, intelligent melodic pop of singer/songwriters such as Michael Penn and Neil Finn. While most of the first half of the album is fairly solid and radio friendly, songs like "A Likely Story" and "I Get That All the Time" tend to veer toward the slightly harder, rockier sound of Canadian rockers the Odds . The band appears to hit pay dirt during the latter half with more introspective and catchy tunes. A gem such as "Just Be You," with its infectious, yet quirky, Beatles backbeat is surpassed only by "Few and Far Between," a tender, acoustic-tinged ballad. Perhaps hard to find, but hard to pass by upon listening. — Jason MacNeil |
GREG
WYARD He's
not reinventing the wheel, but as far as lyrical, songwriterly pop/rock
goes, Toronto singer and guitarist Greg Wyard is onto something with The
First. Hooky songs abound, and Wyard's clear, highly articulated voice
drives his points home. He plays the Free Times Cafe tonight (Thursday,
April 13) -- check out gregwyard.com for more info. KH
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Greg Wyard: The First By Sheri Levine Greg Wyard is trying to tell you something, and his message couldn't be more cautionary in today's world of sensory overload. He makes a big statement on the opening track, Nothing left to the imagination: "Take a look at television, videos, comic books and talk shows/Do we even need to think at all?" This song reflects today's desensitized postmodern society. Wyard's debut CD, The First, is a fine piece of work, an eclectic blend of acoustic and electric guitars, piano and strings. Wyard's style is straightforward light rock with an elegant folk twist. Understated vocals top off the deft instrumental work. Wyard's vocal range never really changes, but the subtlety of his voice keeps drawing you in. Open Window - an instrumental Spanish guitar piece - and Looking in from the Outside create a very romantic mood. Wyard has gone to bat for the first time with this CD, and even though he hasn't hit a home run, he certainly did not strike out. There is a lot of good material here. It just lacks a certain edge. Just when you think he's about to rock, Wyard mellows out: Nothing left to the Imagination and No Parking being prime examples of this energy drain. Wyard has all the elements of a truly talented musician. He's got the voice, the music, the charisma and songwriting talent. What he writes about is what most of us can relate to. Whether it's rampant technology or love gone wrong, Wyard puts his own unique stamp on these themes. Wyard gives the listener some thought-provoking music, and this CD is well worth picking up. The buzz going round is that Wyard could become a musical sensation! So get in on the ground floor! Get Wyard! |
GREG
WYARD There's
nothing like a killer hook to pull you out of a dark day, and there's
been a few of those lately. Ottawa's Greg Wyard (alongside the occasional
co-conspirator) writes impeccably crafted pop tunes in the vein of Squeeze
or Crowded House - the kind of grown-up tunes that leave you humming the
chorus and feeling good knowing that there's more to the current crop
of male musicians than Ricky Martin and Kid Rock. The First has
a full sound, polished without being slick, and includes a wide range
of instruments: Hammond B3, piano, sax, trombone and luxurious strings.
The uptempo songs shift in style from the Argy Bargy-ness of "Nothing
left to the Imagination" to the Stax feel of "Let Your Hair
Down," but Wyard maintains strong melodies on weepers like "Looking
In From the Outside" and the sweet title track. Wonderful. (Greg
Wyard plays tonight at C'est What?) |
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GREG
WYARD Wyard
is a fixture on the local music scene, frequently holding court, singing
cover songs at area pubs. With his debut release, however, he proves himself
a more than capable songwriter who is particularly adept at the sort of
mid-tempo, folk-flavored pop Blue Rodeo has done so well. On songs like
the infectious "Thief of Time," in fact, Wyard clearly comes
across as a songwriter deserving much wider recognition than the Friday
night pub crowd he normally plays to. A fine debut, with superb musicianship
and confident songwriting on display. -Shelley Devoto |