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Wiser Time has been reviewed or interviewed by publications including:
There And Back Again
by Rhys Williams
Wiser Time are a New York based quartet who take their name from the Black Crowes' Amorica classic. This band owes a lot more than their moniker to the Robinsons, wielding a heavy, greasy, blues-saturated rock sound much akin to the brothers Chris and Rich.
It's no small feat then that this album, 'There And Back Again', is likely to be the equivalent of 'Shake Your Moneymaker' for a new generation of blues/rock fans. The album consists of eleven hard-rocking epics that barely leave the listener time to breathe, full of dual guitar lines and swampy rock 'n' roll swagger.
The key factor that may prove invaluable in separating Wiser Time from the scores of similar bands, and propel them into the limelight, is vocalist Carmen Sclafani, who possesses the type of molasses-drenched voice that belongs in the 1970s. He is the perfect unifying voice for the band's sleazy sound, and a formidable frontman.
Even the most skeptical of critics would be hard pushed to find holes to pick at in this release, and the band moves from strength to strength, firing on all cylinders from start to close. Sure, the band wears its influences proudly on its sleeve, with the music harking back to the 1960s and 70s, but when the end result is this fresh and exciting, who cares! Rating: 4/5 STARS
The Weekender NEPA's 1 Arts Entertainment Weekly
Derivative But Delicious
by Kevin Krieger
Imitation may be the most sincere form of flattery, but for Millington, N.J., trio Wiser Time, the saying takes on a whole new meaning. The band is obviously influenced by the Black Crowes, and if they weren't so damn good, it might be fair to call them copycats and too retro — a charge that was often leveled at the Crowes in their early days.
Operating from a three-man outfit (Carmen Sclafani on vocals, guitars and harmonica; Steve Decker on drums and percussion; Jon Cornell on bass), the band captures a stripped-down sound that fires on all cylinders. The songwriting is solid and — dare I say it? — some of their material is as good as the Black Crowes.
If you scrape some of the grit from Chris Robinson's voice and knock Rich Robinson's amps back a notch, you'd be sitting squarely in Wiser Time territory. For its sophomore release, titled "All For One," the band settles into a bluesy groove punctuated by old-school classic rock riffs.
Frontman Sclafani is an excellent guitarist and perhaps an even better vocalist, but it's the songs that shine on "All For One." "Hammer Down," "Even" and "Crawling Floor" all take their cues from the soulful swagger of bands like the Rolling Stones, Free and early Led Zeppelin. In a welcome change of pace, the acoustic "A Long Time Gone" breaks out the 12-string guitars and mandolins for an emotional ballad that gives the CD the right amount of balance.
The album rolls to a close with the slow blues of "Blame It All On Me," but not before the raw slide guitar on "Floating Blues" rips things up one more time. Although the CD clocks in at just 36 minutes, not a single note is wasted.
It would be easy to write off Wiser Time as a retread of old Humble Pie and Faces riffs, but the original material actually plays well against the big boys. Bottom line is that if you have even a mild attraction to the first Black Crowes album ("Shake Your Moneymaker") "All For One" from Wiser Time — itself a Black Crowes song title — will not disappoint. Rating: W W W
Classic Rock Magazine
September 2008: The Real 100 Greatest Rock Songs
Wiser Time - All For One
Blues Rock That's Not Too Hard To Handle.
By Jerry Ewing
It can be no small coincidence that this New Jersey mob take their name from a Black Crowes song. For the influence of Chris Robinson and co. is writ large all over Wiser Time's second album. Early Black Crowes, mind, none of the drugged-up, jammed out noodling of later years. And operating in a classic rock trio format, Wiser Time are a bit more rock than the Otis Redding-inspired soul that we got from Shake Your Money Maker. It's fluidly enjoyable stuff, with the likes of Even, Hammer Down and Blame It All On Me rocking hard, whilst the loose-limbed groove of A Long Time Gone echoes Brit rock soulsters Free. Still, there's certainly no denying the uncanny similarities between Carmen Sclafani and Chris Robinson's vocals. 7 of 10
ROCKTIMES Magazine (Germany) - Interview
CLICK HERE to read the interview
Riseing Stars Channel: Wiser Time
Mike Butler
