John Wizards (album)

John Wizards
Studio album by John Wizards (musical group)
Released	November 2, 2013
Recorded	2010-2013
Genre	South African house, R&B, Shangaan electro, reggae, afropop, soukous
Length	43:57
Label	Planet Mu
Producer	John Withers
Singles from John Wizards
"Lusaka by Night" Released: 17 June 2013 "Muizenberg" Released: 16 December 2013

John Wizards is the first album by South African band John Wizards, released in September 2013 on Planet Mu Records.

Reception

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
The Guardian	[1]
PopMatters	[2]
NME	[3]
Pitchfork Media	[4]
Drowned in Sound	[5]
Clash (magazine)	[6]
The Quietus	Positive [7]
Mojo (magazine)	[8]
Resident Advisor	[9]

The album was met with critical acclaim. Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, reported an average score of 81 based on 16 reviews, described as "universal acclaim".^[10] The Guardian awarded the album four out of five stars, and placed the album at number 8 on its top 10 albums of 2013.^[11] Pop Matters praised the album, saying, "[John Wizards] create multiple moods and textures that flow seamlessly into one another without a single dull or unnecessary moment anywhere on this record.^[12]" NME gave the album a 7 out of 10, describing John Wizards as "the most globe-trotting band you'll hear this year.^[13]" The album was awarded 5th best album of the year at the Worldwide Winners awards in 2014.^[14] South Africa's PLATFORM magazine placed the album at number 33 on its best albums list, with writer Andy Petersen saying, "it feels vibrant and necessary in a way that not too many South African albums of late have managed to feel."^[15]

Track listing

All lyrics written by John Withers except where noted, all music composed by John Withers except where noted.

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Tet Lek Schrempf"	4:00
2.	"Lusaka by Night" (Vocals and lyrics by Emmanuel Nzaramba)	2:58
3.	"Limpop" (Vocals and lyrics by Emmanuel Nzaramba)	2:32
4.	"Muizenberg"	3:26
5.	"iYongwe"	2:49
6.	"Finally/Jet Up"	2:38
7.	"Maria" (Vocals and lyrics by Emmanuel Nzaramba)	3:46
8.	"Jabu Ley" (Vocals and lyrics by Emmanuel Nzaramba)	2:47
9.	"Jamieo"	2:10
10.	"Leuk"	3:46
11.	"Durvs"	1:34
12.	"I'm Still a Serious Guy"	2:50
13.	"Hogsback" (Vocals and lyrics by Emmanuel Nzaramba)	2:28
14.	"Lushoto"	3:28
15.	"Friend" (Vocals and lyrics by Emmanuel Nzaramba)	2:45

References

1. Beaumont-Thomas, Benjamin. "John Wizards - John Wizards review". Theguardian.com. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
2. Hedge Olson, Benjamin. "John Wizards: John Wizards". Popmatters.com. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
3. Gardner, Noel. "John Wizards - 'John Wizards'". Nme.com. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
4. Powell, Mike. "John Wizards - John Wizards". Pitchfork.com. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
5. Bass, George. "John Wizards - John Wizards". Drownedinsound.com. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
6. Oliver, Matt. "John Wizards - John Wizards". Clashmusic.com. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
7. Foley, Ryan. "John Wizards - John Wizards". Thequietus.com. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
8. Mojo Magazine. Nov 2013. p. 90. Missing or empty |title= (help)
9. Ryce, Andrew. "John Wizards - John Wizards". Residentadvisor.net. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
10. Metacritic. "John Wizards - John Wizards". Metacritic. Retrieved 4 March 2014.
11. Llewellyn Smith, Caspar. "The best albums of 2013: No 8 – John Wizards by John Wizards". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 March 2014.
12. Olson, Benjamin. "John Wizards: John Wizards". PopMatters. Retrieved 4 March 2014.
13. Gardner, Noel. "John Wizards - 'John Wizards'". NME. Retrieved 4 March 2014.
14. "WORLDWIDE AWARDS 2014 // THE WINNERS!". Retrieved 4 March 2014.
15. "50 Best Albums of 2013". PLATFORM. Retrieved 2014-04-29.