(2021) Explorer Tapes - Explorer Tapes


Review:
Back in 2015, Texas singer-songwriters Drew Erickson and Max Townsley traveled to Los Angeles where they were signed by Warner/Chappell Music. Soon, their songs were being recorded by top-tier artists such as Keith Urban (“Texas Time”) and they were signed as a duo to Warner (Bros.) Records. Mike Elizondo (Eminem, Carrie Underwood, Fiona Apple) was enlisted as producer. Explorer Tapes, the band and the album, was born. But despite the strength of the songs, the musicianship (including Roger Manning on keyboards, Aaron Sterling on drums, and various horn and string players), the LP remained unreleased until this loving excavation by the Omnivore crew. It’s not hard to see why Keith Urban was drawn to Townsley and Erickson’s songs; “Texas Time” (included here in Explorer Tapes’ own rendition) has an easygoing, lightly funky and swinging groove that just might cause spontaneous tapping or whistling along. The record is packed with lush adult pop – the kind you weren’t sure anybody was still writing – with abundant hooks, falsetto vocals, harmonies, and even bridges (a rarity in songwriting nowadays).  “Julia” is a timeless ballad adorned with brass and even an electric sitar in the mold of those Philly soul classics, but veers off in its own, even more lushly cinematic direction.  The piano-driven “Kids These Days” has an elegance recalling Bacharach or Webb while the chorus of “Washed Away” soars in a manner that would make Brian Wilson proud.  Steely Dan might well be the touchstone for the sleek “Change Looks Good on You.”  This sense of familiarity within the framework of something original characterizes the fine pop songcraft and polished production of Explorer Tapes.  This premiere has the original 12-song album plus two additional cuts (the breezy “Sunset Strip” and wry “Still Love Lindsay”), leaving the listener wanting to explore more of these Tapes.  — SecondDisc





Track Listing:
01.All Depends On You
02.Texas Time
03.A Good Friend Is Hard To Find
04.Julia
05.Kids These Days
06.Washed Away
07.Change Looks Good On You
08.Radio
09.Everybody's Crazy
10.More Than A Song Can Say
11.Easy To Love
12.Wouldn't Change A Thing
13.Sunset Strip [Bonus Track]
14.Still Love Lindsay [Bonus Track]


Media Report:
Genre: pop, soft rock
Country: USA
Format: FLAC
Format/Info: Free Lossless Audio Codec, 16-bit PCM
Bit rate mode: Variable
Channel(s): 2 channels
Sampling rate: 44.1 KHz
Bit depth: 16 bits