News (412)

• June 7, 2023
• Colleen Johnson
• 660
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(photo credit: Amanda Curtis)

One of my most significant memories from just under a decade’s worth of years that I covered Warped Tour; was meeting up with the incredibly talented and, it has to be said, relatively young Echosmith. We’re talking about the summer their first big smash, Cool Kids,  was all over your airwaves. The band was taking on their first full Warped Tour, and despite their age and easily being the youngest band on the tour, now looking back at that year’s lineup, they oozed professionalism despite still being so new to touring. 

And that was only the beginning of a wild ride that made the band achieve platinum status, completing several headlining runs, as well as releasing several albums. All those years of their journey have catapulted the band to a point where over ten years into their career, they just announced their self-titled album, which drops on 7/28 of this year. The self-titled album is typically saved for a band’s debut effort or saved and savored for the album that a band truly believes defines a band. And that time is now for Echosmith. For many reasons, this album was meant to be self-titled, coming from someone who hasn’t heard it yet. The biggest reason, in my eye, is that the album was entirely written by only the band and produced by Noah Sierota, of the band of course. It also served as the first album back for Jamie after departing in 2016 for several years. It is a family affair after all through it all for the band, and his return is sure to influence the vibes a bit in a significant way. 

According to vocalist Sydney, the lead-off single in Sour was inspired by the anxiety she was feeling being long-distance with her husband. Sydney has been married for several years now, and the pain is felt in the track but, of course, with an Echosmith sprinkling of beauty. Be it the opening moments that harken to ideas of acts like Phoebe Bridgers and Julien Baker. Or her potent signature vocals that dominate the chorus. The lyrics hit perfectly to top it all off with favorite lines of mine, including, “Like lemons in water, it’s a hit of the sour, but not the good kind.” To the beauty that is, “There’s blood in the water, I don’t wanna drift farther, so I’ll see you tonight,” the track is an absolute smash. And if the album is anything like this taste, it’s sure to be a career-defining album for the band. 

Seeing the band’s career grow over the years, be it just before the pandemic full-length release of “Lonely Generation.” Incredibly fitting considering what was to come for the world as the album dropped in just January 2020! But since then, the band has done their first successful headling run back to make up for the lost ability to tour that album. Still, as aforementioned, we got a taste of what’s to come for the band. Check out the track below and keep your eyes peeled for more from Echosmith. I know the world seems crazy right now, but tons of new music is coming out, nostalgic acts are hitting the road again, and so many new artists are coming to light. It’s a wild ride that can be overwhelming, but we all need it now. I said it during the early days of the pandemic, and I’ll repeat it. Let the music be your armor, and I’m sure many will agree with me in saying that I’ll never take the power of live music or music in general for granted ever again.