WILDSTREET: Iv (HARD ROCK): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

If there's one band with a special place in the hard-rock landscape, it's Wildstreet. With six million streams on Spotify and four million views on YouTube, Eric Jayk's project is definitely a phenomenon on the web. What's more, and this is related to the point already made, the combo has a habit of releasing one single after another, prioritizing singles over studio opuses. Three years after a highly successful “III”, the New Yorker, surrounded by a new line-up, offers us a discographic galette for which he obviously didn't bother too much to find a title, since it's entitled “IV”.

The format of this disc is hybrid. With seven tracks, it's too long to be called an EP, but not long enough to be called an album. What's more, all the tracks have already been released individually since 2021 but curiously, 'One Tattoo' (2022) is not present. On the other hand, the cover of The 69 Eyes' 'Mrs. Sleazy' is there, even though its release was almost simultaneous with that of “III”. In short, Eric Jayk's logic is rather difficult to follow, but as he has proved time and again that he knows how to manage his projects perfectly, we'll continue to trust him. All the more so as there's once again plenty to satisfy the ears on this latest release.

Once again as varied as it is coherent, the newcomer also multiplies the number of guests, and it would be difficult to mention them all without becoming boring. As their added value is not always obvious, we'll limit ourselves to mentioning Todd Long's pedal-steel guitar, which brings a very country color to the bewitching 'Won't Be Apart'. We'll also note the presence of Dave Abbruzzese (ex-Pearl Jam) behind the drums on the unstoppable 'Sick To Death'. Last but not least, we'd like to mention the participation of our national Steeve Estatof on the direct, hard-hitting glam of 'Come Down'. The last important point to note is the massive presence of sweetness, since three tracks here can be assimilated to the ballad format, which is a lot even if their qualities are undeniable. The crepuscular 'The Road' could make an excellent soundtrack for a film's closing credits.

Wildstreet serves up another addictive, tasteful dish with “IV”, covering a broad spectrum of sleaze and glam hard rock. The format certainly has its limits, but Eric Jayk always manages to master them and use them to his advantage. However, it would be interesting to see him work on a longer (but not too long) work again, so as to avoid the sensation of insufficient quantity. Perhaps next time? - Official website

WILDSTREET

IV

AUTRE LABEL

HARD ROCK