Through These Waves

March 10, 2017 Release


Album Review

Tom Hull - on the Web
Music Week
(Old Music)
January 15, 2024

“…Also, note that three A- albums this week were in Old Music, but not very old. The tip for the South African record came from Christgau's January CG [Consumers Guide].  The other two [Through These Waves and Now I'm Free] came in the mail well after I gave an A- to Bill Scorzari's The Crosswinds of Kansas (again, following up on a Christgau tip). Having the CDs helped, but only because the albums were so good in the first place.”

Tom Hull Review of Through These Waves


ALBUM REVIEW

Listen Again: Bill Scorzari’s “Through These Waves”
by Will Phoenix
1/1/2024

" “Listen Again” is a review series in which we revisit releases that, for whatever reason, never received the attention or acclaim they might have deserved when they first hit the record bins. Whether it was because the album was ahead of its time, strayed from the artist’s expected style, was misunderstood, or just not properly promoted, the “Listen Again” series urges music fans to “listen again.” This time we revisit Bill Scorzari’s 2017 release “Through These Waves." 

Bill Scorzari

Bill Scorzari is a New York-based singer, songwriter, and musician. His rockin’ resume includes four albums including his premiere platter 2014’s “Just the Same”, through his newest disc, 2022’s “The Crosswinds of Kansas.” Scorzari has played at various venues and terrestrial radio stations and completed two cross-country tours too. 

“Through These Waves”

“Through These Waves” is Scorzari’s sophomore release. With a running time of over 52 minutes, this 12-track album features all original cuts. On this album, Scorzari, who arranged and wrote the songs, leads the way on acoustic guitar and vocals. He is backed by an assortment of artists. The list includes Brent Burke (dobro); Chris Scruggs (steel guitar); Danny Roaman (slide guitar); Eamon McLoughlin (cello, fiddle, and viola); Joachim Cooder (drums and percussion); Jon Estes (upright bass, organ, acoustic guitar, and percussion); Kyle Tuttle (banjo); Laur Joamets (slide and electric guitars); Will Kimbrough (piano and mandolin); Matt Murphy (upright bass); producer Jonah Tolchin (lap steel and electric guitars); and Marie Lewey and Cindy Walker Vocals (background vocals).

In an interview, Scorzari recalls his feelings while making the album. He said: “The experience was surreal…transformative…unifying…effortless.” …

Listen again

This album is an early example of Scorzari’s abilities to effectively explore such themes as hope, life, love, perseverance, self-awareness, thankfulness, and the struggles of the everyman backed by his own musically distinctive sustainable synergy of no-nonsense vocals, and electric and acoustic instruments. His sincere back porch song stories are also often observantly astute. If you’ve never heard Bill Scorzari’s “Through These Waves”, listen to it; and if you've already listened to it once...listen again."

FULL REVIEW: LISTEN AGAIN BY WILL PHOENIX


LUCKY MUD MUSIC
Radio Show #74
Featuring "It's Time" from Through These Waves
August 29, 2022

...Love can fix anything. If you have the blues, love can fix it. If you have a broken heart, love can fix it. If you're in despair, love can fix it. ...These songs can help guide you to all of the goodness and love in the world. ...share these songs of love and loss and everything in between..." -Always in love, Maggie & Mike     Lucky Mud 
Lucky Mud Music.com

 

"...once in awhile... just once in awhile...you find one and, man, it's a rush. Case in point, a compact disc by Bill Scorzari titled Through These Waves...Bill Scorzari is a force. His songwriting is stellar, his picking above par and his voice fits his songs perfectly. The album itself is a knockout. ..performances are topnotch all-around...I give this a solid A, top to bottom.
I give 'Hound Dog Diggin'' an A+ for the groove alone." --No Depression
Full Review
 

"Bill Scorzari has a lived-in voice that says, 'Listen to these songs.' They spring from the earth and the ocean with an open heart and the wisdom of experience." --John Platt / WFUV
WFUV Interview


"One of 2017’s best albums so far comes from New York-based Bill Scorzari ... The crisp, organic interplay of both acoustic and electric instruments perfectly frame Scorzari’s weathered, raspy voice that many have described as “singular” or ’idiosyncratic.” Just to give you some clues, head in the direction of Tom Waits or Malcolm Holcombe. Scorzari’s voice is in that neighborhood but still stands apart. And, then there are his thoughtful, cinematically shaped songs that continue to resonate after repeated listens. Yes, this is a “must hear” for singer-songwriter aficionados." --Elmore Magazine
Full Review
 

"Linked here is Bill’s last album which I raced to listen to after previews of an upcoming album titled ‘Now I’m Free’. I’m super excited about the upcoming album and about lost my shit when I streamed through this one released back in 2017. A superb singer/songwriter with an outlaw rasp and a heavy-hearted soul. Seriously looking forward to this." --The Ripple Effect
The Ripple Effect 9/19/2019 review of Through These Waves


"Have you ever first heard a piece of music that was so good, you start to wonder if music can ever get any better? Bill Scorzari’s sophomore release is just that kind of album." --Blurt Magazine
Full Review
 

"The album highlight doesn't take long to appear, as the secnd tune “A Brand New Deal” combines an upbeat feel with a bluegrassy, mountain-esque feeling and an orchestral backdrop into a perfect execution of playfulness and sophistication, not to mention clever, warm storytelling. I'm not exaggerating when I say that this could be the best song of 2017...Scorzari proves he's skilled at sparse balladry across the entire listen where sincere, gruff tunes like “Shelter From The Wind,” the ever so gentle “More Of Your Love,” and the haunting “She Don't Care About Auld Lang Syne.” These selections resonate with a seemingly basic beauty that runs parallel to the greatness achieved by Sam Beam (Iron & Wine) or Matt The Electrician. Fuller offerings like “Hound Dog Diggin'” and “For When I Didn't See” make full use of the folk, roots, and Americana hybrid that's often prevalent and would be a great companion to The Decemberists' The King Is Dead." --Daily Vault
Full Review
 

"Scorzari’s songs are consistently profound, poetic, and emotional; and his voice—as gravelly and compelling as Tom Waits’s—is counterpointed beautifully with strings and, on the gorgeous “More of Your Love,” a female vocalist. This is one of the most compelling albums by a little-known artist that I’ve heard in a while." --The Morton Report
Full Review
 

"...it's memorable and melodic, and once heard, it leaves the listener breathless and wanting more. Scorzari's an old soul with plenty of circumspect to share and in soaking up the sentiment, he offers plenty of life lessons well worth remembering." --Country Standard Time
Full Review
 

"Scorzari’s songs are often about seeking a kindred soul and in that finding solace. There is a poetic grace that makes them worth listening to and reading." --Lonesome Highway
Full Review


 "An album that is serene, uplifting, and powerful, Through These  Waves is a gem waiting to be discovered." --The Daily Country
Full Review


"I'm not sure how often albums as compelling as Bill Scorzari's Through These Waves appear in my life, but I'll take a guess at about once every two years...maybe three... Artists that have this ability are rare--Waits, Dylan, Cohen, and today's John Moreland and Jason Isbell--and aren't musicians so much as world-class poets that happened to pick up a guitar. Again, it's impossible to join this club by only being 99% genuine." --Lonesome Banjo Chronicles
Full Review


"Scorzari sings, but his version of singing is more of the spoken poetry with a pulsating vibration timbre that Sam Baker has perfected over the course of four albums and innumerable gigs. He connects with listeners by creating soundscapes that reveal descriptions of mood and atmosphere more than character. You listen and think, Yes—I’ve felt that..." --Fervor Coulee
Full Review


“... he’s a songwriter of the highest order with a three pack a day voice that sounds nothing like that during every day conversation. When he’s on stage though, that voice will make you pay attention to lyrics that can turn a phrase, make you think or make you thankful that there’s someone out there to relate to.” --Medium
Full Interview


"...Scorzari has struck gold on what is only his second album, Through These Waves...His style of music occasionally reminds me of Sam Baker, the wistfulness and precise nature of the songs and wondrous beauty, and arguably his greatest attribute honesty the record is one of the finest I have stumbled across in a long time." --Flying Shoes (UK)
Full Review 

 

More THROUGH THESE WAVES Press

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