The Album

Album cover designed by Nixie Pixie.

Today we are transported into the magical realm of wizard rock radio to tune in to a very special album by Ashley Hamel called WZRD. This incredible witch intersperses radio talk show conversation into the album, which is otherwise full of songs from the wizarding world. The album has a total of twelve tracks (as well as a bonus track if you buy the album), and can be downloaded digitally or bought as a physical CD!

Released on January 9, 2019, the album was recorded by Michael Arafeh at The Coffeehouse, Middletown, CT; produced by Ashley Hamel and Michael Arafeh. Ashley does vocals, acoustic guitar, ukulele, and keyboard, while Seth Faulk is on drums, percussion, and background vocals (in tracks 2 and 10), with Jay Wiggin on electric bass.

Turn your radio up, snuggle under a blanket next to the fireplace, and let’s get ready to listen!

The Tracks

Turn your dial to WZRD in and listen to Josh Rubino as we are wished a Gooood Morning! Then we dive right into the first song, Love Cannot Be Sorted. With incredible harmonies, romantic lyrics, and an amazing band behind her, Ashley sings about the pros and cons of falling in love with a member of each Hogwarts House. The depth that this piece goes into for each of the four Houses is impressive. There is a wonderful message in the title, and this song is one that I definitely listen to on repeat.

The radio keeps us going as we get into the next song, Hey Dude (My Sister Tho?). This song from Ron Weasley’s point of view is an absolute bop. It is hilarious, true, and catchy. Ashley gets to show off her vocals in this one, as you can really hear the emotions and expressions that she is using in her voice.

Next we get a Mail Drop with the radio host. A caller tells us that she wants WZRD to play a song that represents how she feels about her ex-husband. That leads us into Rodolphus. This is, as far as I’m aware, the only wizard rock song about Bellatrix Lestrange’s husband, and I absolutely love it. “Being alone with my thoughts is better than being alone with you” is by far my favorite line from this one, but the song is packed with great lyrics throughout. The full band behind Ashley’s strong voice makes this a top contender for my favorite song on the album.

If you know where the term “Potterhead” originates from, you’ll likely be a fan of the next song, Hufflepuff Puff Pass. Each verse is in a reggae style of music, while the chorus takes a quicker tempo. Ashley answers the question of what it would be like to get high at Hogwarts.

Josh ends his segment with SENT, and we move right into a new segment: Goodnight With Gardenia.

Look at Me was originally written by Riddle TM, and it is performed beautifully by Ashley. It is a slower song with guitar and lovely harmonies throughout. More instruments are added the further into the song they go, and Ashley’s vocal performance grows stronger and more emotional as well. As a long time fan of Riddle TM’s music, I was very excited to see that Ashley covered one of their songs for this album.

Bring Them Home was written by Ashley as well as Grace Kendall. This is one of my all-time favorite wizard rock songs. I am obsessed with the harmonies, and the haunting lyrics convey Molly Weasley’s plight beautifully. I also appreciate how subtle this song is; the lyrics could almost be about anyone – but “this clock’s able to hold the nine hands of my life” is a big clue as to who the song is really about.

The last bit of radio show talk comes to us as Basic Muggle Life, and then we get into the twelfth song on the album. Waiting is a wonderful song from what I can only assume is Ashley’s point of view, about the struggles of dealing with people and their BS, and also about being Asian (which I love that she put in there). Once again Ashley shows off her amazing vocal talent in this one.

(There is a secret 13th bonus track that is only available if you buy the whole album! This song was written by Ashley and Adam Dubberly and is called Being Here With You Tonight. Clocking in at over seven minutes long, Ashley manages to pull at my heartstrings as she sings about the community we’ve made around the boy who lived. In my opinion, this song is definitely worth unlocking by buying the album.)

In Summary

Everyone that came together to make this album what it is did an incredible job giving it the life and spirit it deserves. Ashley is an incredibly talented artist who always moves me with her lyrics, harmonies, and passion for song. I highly recommend listening to this album, as well as all of her other music. I give this album the #1 wizarding radio show award!