During the ’70s, members of the Chicago-based group Ultima Thule rocked the region.

Eventually setting up headquarters in Milwaukee in the comfort of a 14-room Victorian style house, Ultima Thule lived, wrote, rehearsed and eventually teamed up with a booking agency. This led the group on tours throughout the Midwest performing covers from popular groups such as The Beatles, Eagles, Pink Floyd and CSNY.

After that time period, the members of the highly talented sextet went on to play solo, play with different bands and some worked as contracted creatives for CBS Records. As Ultima Thule’s existence faded, 2008 saw the resurgence of this group of rockers as The Willing.

The Willing are here with a new album, e•motion², which is a well crafted, well produced collection of adult alternative/roots rockin’ songs which prove to be a testament to the band’s undying chemistry, their seasoned songwriting and composition talents, and their ability to grab listeners and audiences with their smooth, uplifting blend of sounds.

Considering each member of The Willing is a multi-instrumentalist and the group includes five songwriters, their music is the culmination of all these styles, personalities and perspectives joining forces to create music that is easily accessible for a wide array of listeners as well as simply being easy and just a joy to listen to. e•motion² jams from track 1 all the way to track 13.

…and you don’t necessarily need to be an adult or even enjoy adult alternative to appreciate the musicality, the seasoned class of talent or the smoothness with which each of these songs infects your auditory and central nervous system. All 13 songs go down as smooth as melted butter on a warm biscuit!

My top tracks from this potent collection include: Ride On (this one rocks), You Can’t Run From A Broken Heart (this one just sounds really good), I Feel Like I Can Fly (especially the lead guitar work), Going Home (great vibes, great energy), Sing (the music grabs you from the first note, an intense but soaring bluesy-rock jam).

e•motion² is now available on iTunes/Apple Music.

You can connect directly with The Willing on their official website or Facebook.

I also recommend you dig into The Willing’s previous releases which include: two albums, Unfinished Business and Right Direction and three singles Ancient Astronauts, Angels Sing (of Christmas) and Wonderful Life.