JJ WILDE: Ruthless (ROCK): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

At the age of 28, with her piercing blue eyes and rebellious face, JJ Wilde is the new darling of her native Canada, where she is at the top of the charts with her single 'The Rush'. Not bad for an artist who was still unknown last year. Young women are rare in rock music, especially solo. So the arrival of a feminine personality on a predominantly male stage is a cause for curiosity. So is this first album "Ruthless" up to the plebiscite?

Not really in truth. Not that it's bad, far from it. But it can't be said that it shines by its originality. Let's say he does the job, to use an old saying, and has the defects of his qualities. Among these, a raw sound without embellishment and above all a voice. And what a voice. JJ Wilde impresses by his deep, slightly rocky timbre, both powerful and sensual, vector of beautiful emotions, as on the very beautiful 'Funeral For A Lover' and on the very successful 'Trouble', a soul blues track inspired by Amy Winehouse.

But the main flaws of "Ruthless" lie in the lack of ambition of many compositions, which remain in the whole of a classicism without much flavour. Between rock tracks strongly influenced by the Black Keys ('The Rush', 'Home'), rather banal pop rock songs ('Cold Shoulder', 'State Of Mind') and conventional ballads ('Gave It All'), It's hard to be really enthusiastic about JJ Wilde's qualities as a composer, as she only manages to break free from the codes with very rare exceptions, like on the wild rock 'Wired', probably the most interesting track of the album musically speaking.

Despite everything, "Ruthless" remains a promising first album, because beyond the sublime voice of its interpreter, it shows a real rocker's personality that is just waiting to blossom. JJ Wilde has plenty of time to assert herself, provided she is less wise and less consensual in the future. - Official website

JJ WILDE

RUTHLESS

SONY BMG

ROCK