And Best Country Artist Goes To: Echosmith's Genre-Bending Music

Echosmith

I have to admit that I had some bias when it came to Echosmith's debut album, "Talking Friends".  I downloaded it early, back at the end of 2013, when it was first released.  Becca, a friend of mine, referred this album to me, but, shortly after that, the first single, "Cool Kids", hit the airwaves, I lost my appetite to listen to it.

Now "Cool Kids" is a pretty cool song - catchy and effervescent with a killer hook.  It's not a bad song.  So why is it that it drove me nuts?  Was it the juvenile lyrics about teen angst?  Most likely it was the curse of my generation, the post-modern Gen X.  We hate everything, especially when it has mass appeal and is commercially viable.

This same bias doesn't pertain to my kids.  They love Echosmith, and this record is regularly listened to in the kitchen or sung to in the car.  It has become a fast favorite in the Jessop household, and yet I still resisted giving it a listen.  Sometimes, in the car, I would ask, "Who is this country song?"  And my kids would firmly defend their un-country-ness, saying that they are alternative rock.

But it is undeniable - there is a country twang in some of the songs like "Bright" and "Nothing's Wrong".  I have a theory about this.  Regardless of their musical abilities, they do not write their own music by themselves.  They have a music writing team that works with them.  It's a thing that record companies do.  This means that they aren't truly "alternative", but a creation of the music industry.  All of the songs are written genre-neutral so that with a few minor changes they can be twisted into whatever genre is selling.  That's why many of these songs sound like they could be modern country hits.  With Echosmith, it has become a running joke with my daughter Sara.  Every time one of their songs comes on, I say, "Who is this country song by?"  "Dad, it's not country!  It's Echosmith!"  Really, I know, and so does she.

But I am being too harsh, I think.  I am slowly becoming a musical curmudgeon.  They are not that bad!  They are actually kind of catchy.  Music industry creation, or not, they are better than anything else on the mainstream radio - which is nice.  I mean, they play instruments.  Can Bieber say that?

Echosmith is a California quartet made up of the Sierota siblings, all young enough to be in the same demographic as my own kids.  They make sweet, innocent, bubbly music.  I sat down to fully listen to the album for the first time a few days ago.  Even though it has taken me a long time, even though the fervor for their hit single has died down by now, I have to admit - this album is pretty good.  There are some really finger-tapping tunes on here with enough hooks to catch a school of high school fish.  "Come Together" is a rousing adolescent anthem.  "Let's Love" is a pleasant jig featuring the vocal talents of  both Jaime and sister Sydney, as is "Marching Into the Sun".  My favorite song is "Safest Place".  But as I said, it's all hooks.  Hooks galore.

So will they be one-hit wonders?  Only a second album will tell.  And enough time has gone by that one should be forthcoming.  Nothing on here is going to make me think too deeply.  It's all saccharine.  But it tastes sweet.  And sometimes you just have a sweet tooth.  This will never be my favorite album.  But it's pleasant enough that I won't be deleting it off my phone.  And that's the best compliment I can pay to Echosmith.