The Waiting
Exclaim
- Rachel Sanders
"With grander arrangements and more conviction in his chocolate-rich vocals, Royal Wood steps up on his third album, confirming his position amongst the cream of Canada's songwriting crop. The Waiting opens with the almost unbearably slick "You Can't Go Back," but immediately moves into rougher terrain with the breathtaking "Do You Recall"; Wood's urgently thudding piano line reels you in and leaves you helpless in its crashing surf of drums and electric pop. The Toronto, ON songwriter pushes his melodies to their limits throughout the first half of the album, hitting another high note with the clatter and rumble of "On Top Of Your Love." The intensity ebbs midway through and he returns to subtler acoustic arrangements that recall his earlier work, placing his affecting lyrics centre stage. It all winds down with the beautifully weary "When Nothing's Left," in which the wrung-out tenor of Wood's crooning demonstrates the emotional depths he's plumbed for the sake of musical magic. "
Ottawa Sun
- Denis Armstrong
"Like a sober and spiffily cleaned-up Tom Wait's, Toronto singer songwriter Royal Wood writes lovely, memorable romantic songs that grab the heart like a gospel singer praising the Lord. "Tonight, I Will Be Your Guide", "Paradise", "Lady In White". Beautiful, spare songs. I received his new album "The Waiting" today at noon and by 5 p.m., had listened to the whole album compulsively four more times. It's been ages since that happened."
Toronto Life
- Sarah Liss
"Royal Wood is no throwback. Despite his suede-smooth voice and fondness for Steinways and three-piece suits, he prefers to leave Rat Pack revivalism to the Michael Bublés of the world. The thoroughly contemporary multi-instrumentalist has a gift for layered, prismatic arrangements that evoke the work of Beach Boys collaborator Van Dyke Parks. As a lyricist, he wears his heart on his bespoke sleeve, offering up wistful tales of love lost and found. Wood's sensitive poet routine has uncommon roots: after studying business at McGill, he moved to Toronto, where he began working as a foreign exchange trader on Bay Street. Then he released several well-received recordings—most notably A Good Enough Day in 2007, which got air play on Grey's Anatomy and earned him an international following and enough security to bid a triumphant farewell to the trading floor. (Finance, Wood insists, was merely "the best and only option" to fund his recordings.) His latest album, The Waiting, was produced with Pierre Marchand, who has refined the ornate sounds of Sarah McLachlan and Rufus Wainwright. Marchand's influence has helped Wood distill his whimsy into smart, sparkling art-pop nuggets: the tunes on The Waiting are crisp, clever and commanding. (Think Wainwright with more chivalry and fewer histrionics.) Wood's fall show at Exhibition Place's 1,250-seat Queen Elizabeth Theatre is his biggest headlining gig yet: the refurbished room has marvelous acoustics and a level of ceremony and elegance worthy of his dapper performance persona. At last, a venue that fits him as well as his finery."
The Metro
- Rachel Sanders
"...sealed his position as one of Canada's major talents."
The Coast
- Carsten Knox
"With The Waiting, Toronto-based songwriter Royal Wood stakes his claim to a broader audience than his first two full-length releases and two EPs have earned. And that's no slight against his earlier work---"A Mirror Without" from A Good Enough Day remains his finest four minutes, 39 seconds ---but there's a wider reach to this collection of songs, marrying his typically heart-worn and -warming lyrics and his distinct piano signatures with the bigger, orchestral sounds provided by Sarah McLachlan and Rufus Wainwright producer Pierre Marchand. Witness the gorgeous statement "On Top of Your Love," now getting big play on CBC Radio 2, the sublimely hooky "Do You Recall" or the lovely, fragile "Lady in White," doubtlessly bound for many future matrimonial ceremonies."
Pop Culture Addict
- Sam Tweedle
"In a music scene full of questionable talent and electronically distorted vocal tracks, thank God musicians like singer/songwriter Royal Wood still exist. With his classic good looks combined with vintage suits that makes him look like he walked out of an episode of Mad Men, Toronto based Royal Wood is the type of musician that the world needs more of – talented, intense, intelligent and real."
The Lost and Found EP
HeroHill
"Royal has moved away from the obvious comparisons to greats like Sexsmith and Wainright and now exists as one of their peers."
EXCLAIM
"Royal Wood's The Lost And Found EP may be a buffer between his celebrated 2007 release A Good Enough Day and his full-length follow-up record, but it's not a disc that'll fall through the cracks. The only crevices Wood's enchanting piano melodies and symphonic string arrangements will traverse are those that lead to our deepest, most cherished sentiments. He wields his passions like a sword, eager to fight for his right to share those universal human emotions with no strings attached."
CHART
"Royal Wood's a masterful storyteller, and his lyrics are what make this six-song disc come together.
Opening track "Don't Fall Apart" is a plea to a couple to figure out their confused ways, while closer "All Of My Life" is a charming vow of a man to a woman as he sings, "Stone on stone and breaking bread/We build a house of us ahead/And talk of all our good and many plans.
Wood's musical sense allows him to add just the right touch around his lyrics, like on "Thinking About," when he carefully strums his acoustic guitar. Wood plays piano over top of orchestral swells for most of "Poor Little World." It all makes for an EP you'll want to find."
THE COAST
"On Royal Wood's fourth release, the current of chamber pop that wended its way through his previous music has broadened. It's no longer just a motif. This feels less like experimentation than a new ethos. Along with his romantic piano playing and deep, resonant vocal tones, Wood is joined by a string section (Kevin Fox, cello, Johann Lotter, viola, Chris Church and Sandy Baron, violin). The ensemble enriches from within, rather than making cursory, quick entrances and exits into arrangements. Wood's songs have always made room for complexity and counterpoint in mood and melody. "Wish to Paint" and "Poor Little World" fully realize this approach."
A Good Enough Day
EYE MAGAZINE
- Paul Isaacs
"An excellent showcase ... an immaculately produced record"
THE COAST
- Sue Carter Flinn
"This Toronto-based former child piano prodigy hasn't squandered his natural talent or sweet tenor voice—A Good Enough Day is a pop delight, an old-fashioned train-car stocked with alternating riffs on love and heartache. Squeaky clean, but not overproduced, fans of Ron Sexsmith and Hawksley Workman—who plays drums on one track—will find plenty to grab hold of, without an annoying nip of imitation. Lovely strings on "Siren" beckon, while "Step Back" takes a fun leap to '60s pop "do-do-do's," providing needed levity. Catchy as hell, "A Mirror Without" has the guts to become a classic. Musically and lyrically well-written, this album is more than good enough."
THE IRISH TIMES
"Established as a talented multi- instrumentalist in his native Canada, the wonderfully named Royal Wood makes his Irish debut with this album of beautifully arranged, sweet and graceful melodies fronted by Wood's voice, which is a peculiar hybrid of Jeff Buckley and Rufus Wainwright. Influences, from early Elton John to Billy Joel and Paul McCartney's Wings, are lightly worn throughout the album, resulting in instantly memorable tunes. Juliet is a gently persuasive letter to a reluctant lover and Acting Crazy a strangely optimistic anthem for the lovelorn. The Tom Waits vibe of Siren and the Aimee Mann-ish Step Back, with its spooky take on "there's no place like home", give a saccharine-cutting edge to the work. With the airwaves dominated by brittle mainstream pop masquerading as indie, Wood deserves a chance to give old- fashioned songwriting a new lease of life."
SPILL MAGAZINE
- James Sandham
'Self-taught one-man musical master and Toronto native Royal Wood's third album is set for release Jan. 30 and showcases a mind-bending range of musical talent - all contained in one man! Royal Wood very capablely personifies the word "multi-instrumentalist." ...something quite beautiful. A Good Enough Day is a piano-driven LP comparable to the musical sensibilities of an early Elton John fused with the Beatles, carrying forth together the vocals of a young John Lennon. Gently rolling piano melodies carry Royal Wood's resonant and softly spoken lyrics, and are accented by simple acoustic guitar arrangements and dreamy, sighed choruses."
Tall Tales
EXCLAIM MAGAZINE
November 2005
"ROYAL WOOD Backed with airtight precision by In-Flight Safety (who apparently had practiced only briefly that day in less than accommodating conditions), each song, such as the heavy "Weigh Me Down," the bouncy "Once" and the enlightening "The Spirits and I," came to life, anchored by either his piano prowess or guitar playing. Wood is on his way to establishing himself alongside the Canadian royalty of artists such as Slean, Sexsmith and Wainwright. - IKM"
EXCLAIM MAGAZINE - Vish Khanna
Dec/Jan, 2004
"On his first full-length, Royal Wood sets his sights on making a grand pop album and just goes for it. The ambitious Tall Tales finds the multi-instrumentalist marking the same territory as Ron Sexsmith, in his vocal style, while beefing up his sound with a reckless inventiveness that recalls the Beatles. There are many ear-catching sounds snaking their way through Wood's lush pastiches of music that only bolster his infectious lyricism. Take heed: if you let poppy numbers like "The Spirits and I" and "Once" get into your head, they will not leave. Ditto for an easy ballad like "Sway". It goes on and on; every song is a charmer in its own right. Armed with a killer band of innovative musicians, Wood makes releasing a great first album look effortless."
CHART ATTACK - Aaron Foster
June 10, 2004
With a sultry voice in the vein of Rufus Wainwright, Ron Sexsmith et al, Mr. Wood is definitely on par with his Canadian counterparts, if not better.
NOW Magazine - DYLAN YOUNG
May 13, 2004
NNNN
It's telling that Royal Wood was a child musical prodigy. His instincts for manoeuvring around a song are expert. For someone so young, that could only come from having been around music at a very early age. He simply makes it sound too easy. The album drifts from sad pastoral laments to capering piano pop jubilance with an effortlessness that is truly staggering. Vocally and lyrically, Wood comes surprisingly close to Aimee Mann's stomping grounds, with glancing blows at Ron Sexsmith's tenebrous pipes and brand of songcraft. But Wood is his own man, his own voice, and the sincerity of his words can't be blamed on anyone but him.
EYE Magazine
May 13, 2004
BEST BET
Local piano-man Royal Wood crafts songs as sturdy and ragged as a freshly cut chunks of oak, but his smooth voice adds a shellac sheen to make them shine like diamonds. Years of slogging it out on the singer/songwriter circuit have paid off handsomely for Wood, in the form of his impressive new debut disc, Tall Tales (Sherpa/MapleNationwide). Evoking storied tunesmiths such as Steely Dan, Jeff Buckley to Hawksley Workman (pre-Bono phase) and burgeoning Brit Ed Harcourt, Royal Wood isn't afraid to ruffle his solemn sentiments and fragile melodies with cabaret-jazz flourishes and a piano-bar looseness. Before the summer sun creeps in, Tall Tales gives us good reason to keep the drapes drawn for a few more moments.
Toronto Star Interview - VIT WAGNER
May 13, 2004
"Tall Tales (is) sung with honesty...a follow-up to 2003 The Milkweed EP, it is an assured, polished work."
MetroToronto - Ian Nathanson
May 13, 2004
****
Much mainstream music tries to grasp greatness amongst albums which, sadly, sound all the same if you listen to them long enough. The new underground, alas, seems to be anyone who can grasp a strong melodic flair and take it to new levels.
Toronto-based multi-instrumentalist Royal Wood already has established himself as a talent to watch with his fine Milkweed EP. And Tall Tales,
his debut full-lengther, evokes more of his knack for penning clever, Randy Newman-style songs in his largely piano-driven repertoire: Meaning? Wry humour mixed with cabaret-style melodies à la Rufus Wainwright or a Jeff Buckley.
Combining bounciness in lead hit Suzanne (his own, not a Leonard Cohen) with ballads that wouldn't sound out of place in a musical of some sorts, Royal Wood has produced a solid disc the mainstream public would -and should - only be too happy to accept.
Toronto Sun - Mary Dickie
May 13, 2004
Tall Tales worth a listen
ON HIS lovely debut album, Tall Tales, local singer/songwriter Royal Wood conjures up the sensitive lyrics and fragile vocals of Ron Sexsmith as well as the swing of Randy Newman in just under a dozen heartfelt, cleverly constructed songs.
Wood's a multi-instrumentalist who relies heavily on his beautiful piano playing for much of Tall Tales' emotional impact, with tasteful string and horn parts adding to the sound but never overpowering the vocals or lyrics.
"They're in a class of their own, these one-man shows. Toronto-based Royal Wood is the latest in a line of guys, like Danny Michel, who do it all themselves. He's got a voice a little higher on the register than Bryan Ferry and has a similar classed-up cabaret feel of debut-era Hawksley Workman. These are mostly love songs and tales about growing up. There's something magical in these common experiences, Royal Wood reminds us, and for that we should thank him." - The Coast
The Milkweed EP
www.music-critic.ca
"Following in the footsteps of Randy Newman, Jeff Buckley, and Tom Waits, Royal Wood is ready to establish himself as a force to be reckoned within Canadian music."
Gauntlet Entertainment
"Royal Wood crafts classic-sounding pop songs that are instantly accessible...The vocals are confident, the melodies exuberant, and the overall atmosphere is relaxed, making it a great chill-out disc. The only downside to the affair is its brevity. EPs are typically meant to wet the appetite in anticipation of a full length album, and Milkweed has certainly done that, but what am I supposed to do until then?"
www.rambles.net
"The Milkweed EP is...spun-sugar perfection"
www.umbrellamusic.com
"A beautiful five song mini-album that somehow manages to blend the songwriting of Tom Waits with a vocal style reminiscent of Jeff Buckley"
www.ectoguide.org
"Royal Wood has made a perfect start to his career and is destined for great things."
University of Calgary Gauntlet
"Sounding much like Jeff Buckley without the high-pitched histrionics, Royal Wood crafts classic-sounding pop songs that are instantly accessible."
