Reviewed by Ian Phillips.
By The WheelWalkers, German Radio Service 2018.
The WheelWalkers are an unpretentious band from Germany who have embarked on a different musical journey from that followed by the vast majority of modern bands.
To start with, they are not comprised of a precocious collection of talented youths but rather four middle-aged gentlemen for whom the importance of good songs is paramount and they have eschewed the trickery of modern recording techniques in favour of live recording.
The songs on Can’t Fake It (their debut album) have been written by Oliver Hehermann, the founder of the band, vocalist, co-producer and unabashed Beatles fan.
The other three members of the band are Jorg Meinhardt on bass, Tonino Giannattasio on drums and Robert Kril on guitar.
The album is refreshing in its simplicity.
There’s no noise or synthetic rhythms and sounds. Understatement is the rule here.
They play a calm and cultivated pop that borrows from blues, rock, country, tango, swing, and more than a nod to their heroes from the 60s.
The WheelWalkers’ sound is timeless.
The instrumentation is simple.
On most tracks it’s limited to bass, guitar, and drums while on some tracks a little keyboard and choir like background vocals are included.
Overdubs are kept to a bare minimum.
The producer, Dieter Krauthausen, deserves some praise for resisting the temptation to fill out the sound with superfluous instrumentation.
Coming across this album is a bit like finding an unknown 60s gem in a second-hand record store. You know, one of those albums that you buy purely because you’re intrigued by the cover only to discover that it’s really good musically too.
In keeping with the retro feel all the songs are short.
The longest track runs to 3.17.
This very quiet and restrained album is an antidote to modern angst.
