Woody's Reviews
Woody and the Violent Femmes enlightened the Fredonia area with a concert full of fresh songwriting and solid, airborne energy. Each band successfully created sound originating in obscurity, then splashing out in waves of wit. This was a Saturday night that one could willfully choose to hang out on campus and have a bit of fun.
Opening the show, Woody broke out on stage with their usual intensity, pulling the crowd in behind the infectious rhythm of “The Handsome Man” and the sheer brilliance of “Lottery”. Jon Matt and Jeff constructed an impressive set list bursting with the expected, enjoyable quirks that are distinctive of a Woody show.
Anyone who has a chance to catch a set of Woody will appreciate the interestingly ambivalent, visionary status of what they are attempting to say. Above all, what the see music as, is a source of pure enjoyment. Synthesize they lyrics with the ominously slithering music, and what is created is a powerful, thought-driven atmosphere of enticing mesmerization.
Woody, once again, performed with the inherent musical genius that defines them in the local music scene. They have successfully proved themselves to be a band with the talent and energy to play a show anywhere, for anyone.
Woody – Self-Titled, by Luke Pyles, for Northeast Performer.
Somehow, everything Woody does makes sense in the end. On their self-titled album, they start out with a straight-ahead alternative rock tune, and then dive into a cut that alternates between 7/8 and 6/4 time, and finally end up in a hodgepodge of hollering, homey guitar lines and relaxing, barefoot bass. It’s a very wild ride, yet not one that leaves the listener bewildered, not even for a second.
There’s the latinish rhythmic shenanigans coated with distortion in “Bossa”, the roaring yet loving wide-openness of “Prom Song” and the perfectly sensible “Zig Zag” to boot, all pleasing and ultimately satisfying.
These nine songs shift and later and mutate themselves constantly, yet we can always find our way safely out of the sonic quagmire. The album has a full sound that explores far and wide, yet is still very comprehensible and appreciable to the unschooled listener. Not bad at all.
Woody: Woody (Silver Circle Reviews) By: Tony G – The Noise
I left Woody’s self-titled album in my roommate’s 5-CD stereo. A few weeks passed and I was listening on Random mode, totally forgetting that Woody was in there. The first track, “Breathing Walls”, started up with a roar. I turned to my roommate, remarked how awesome the song was, that it was familiar, but I forgot who the artist was. Then I realized that it was Woody, standing shoulder to shoulder with the major label artists in the remaining four CD slots.
Woody employs clever fuzz guitar hooks with lilting beats, which make you want to drive fast with the top down. They have a pure alternative pop sensibility reminiscent of the Replacements but harder edged. More like Soul Asylum, actually.
I was quite impressed with the range of instrumentation and vocals on this album. At times, the singer sounded like a grittier Bill Janovitz (Buffalo Tom) or even J. Mascis (Dinosaur Jr.).
Woody is a smorgasbord of sonic appetizers and alterna-rock entrees. “Lottery” has a captivating bouncy bass intro followed by upbeat guitar chops with a hint of ska thrown in. “Bossa” is a funky shuffling swagger of a song. Despite the funky tangents, Woody never strays far from fine guitar leads. “Bossa” ends with an impressively tight jam session. “Zig Zag” showcases a teasing “Stray Cats Strut”-like intro before skittering through a playful interplay of bass and guitar. Undoubtedly, the most amusing song is the penultimate track, “It Ain’t Easy (Being Handsome)”, in which the lead singer laments the difficulty of being such a great looking guy. If that weren’t conceited enough, the promotional flyer that was sent with the CD states rather matter-of-factly “Woody is better than your band.” From a musical standpoint, after several listens, I am convinced they just might be.
