Wilson Gil & The Willful Sinners

Wilson Gil & The Willful Sinners – American Banned Wilson Gil & The Willful Sinners – American Banned / 2006 Tinnitus Records / 13 Tracks / http://www.wilsongil.com / http://www.tinnitusreocrds.com / Reviewed 04 March 2006

For the first half of a second, Wilson Gil & The Willful Sinners sound as if they are going to approach “American Banned” with a style that would approximate The Ramones. This is not to be, as “My Town” is a country-linked brand of hard rock that is catchy in the same ways as a Ramones song but only tied to the band through the use of very common bar chords. “Six Before Seven” is an interesting track due to the spastic drumming that takes such up such a large part of this track. The fact that the beginning of the track is so slow (almost ballad-esque in its speed) and the drums still shoot out all these tendrils really distinguishes Wilson Gil & The Willful Sinners that much more.

Going back to a much more country type of sound (down to the walking bass) to “Bitches and Stitches”, Wilson Gil seems to really have a dilemma on which direction ey and eir band wants to go on this disc. Each of the tracks has a kernel of catchiness to it regardless of the style that the band tries. Now, whether any of these tracks are really innovative is a whole other question, one that may actually not make sense in Wilson Gil’s context. See, Wilson Gil and The Willful Sinners are the equivalent of the bar band; while there is not the “Sweet Home Alabama” cover necessary on this disc, there seems to be a contempt inertia present in this band’s outlook that keeps them to styles individuals would dig at a bar.

Not being experimental does not have any repercussions about the talent of the band; in fact, I would have to say that Wilson Gil and The Willful Sinners are one of the more technically talented acts that I’ve had the honor to hear. The band has their tracks down to a “T”; half of “American Banned” has a runtime ending within fifteen seconds of the other tracks (3:39-3:55). For music that individuals can drink, fight, and fuck to it Wilson Gil is probably the best purchase; if individuals are looking for the cutting-edge of sludge rock, metal, or the like this may not be the best purchase. Check out the video for “Drink” on this CD as well; if there is a way that the band can make it to a larger audience, it is most likely through promotion of this song.

Top Tracks: Drink, Stripped

Rating: 5.5/10

[JMcQ]