The Wesleys - The Wesleys

Following their 2022 EP, Outside Voices, Montreal’s The Wesleys are back with this impressive, eponymous full-length debut.  Their bio mentions influences like Teenage Fanclub, The Pixies, The Replacements and The Clean, and you can definitely hear elements of these somewhat diverse bands as you make your way through the nine songs.  “Make It My Way” kicks the album off with synths and a tight, post punk tinged intro, followed by heavier surf rock flavored guitars, not unlike The Pixies, meshed with jangly guitar pop.  “A Lot To Lose” is a mesmerizing, dreamy, folk-tinged pop track that definitely brings to mind a bit of that aforementioned influence from The Clean.  Next up are “I’ve Been Waiting”, a catchy power pop track with a ragged, garage rock vibe, and the two minute “Fucked Up”, a noisier post punk track.  “25” is a faster paced tune with hooks galore, as is “You Better Believe It”, which opens with a hypnotic guitar and bass intro.  A strong contender for album highlight, “Radio Circus” is more of a melancholy slacker rock track, and lead single “Great Big Smile” is a dreamy, jangly guitar driven track with some nice synth touches.  Closing the album is the taut, angular guitar driven “Death By The Bite”.  In addition to writing everything the album was also recorded and mixed by the band, largely in their home studios, and sounds great.  

(Little Village Records / The Wesleys - Facebook)