the swon brothers later on review

Single Review: ‘Later On’ – The Swon Brothers

10 years ago Liv Carter Comments Off on Single Review: ‘Later On’ – The Swon Brothers
the swon brothers later on review
Arista Nashville

Songwriters: Ryan Hurd, Joey Hyde, Justin Wilson

The Swon Brothers‘ debut single, ‘Later On,’ started its journey at the very beginning of this year. I think I heard it a couple of times and then just forgot about it. Because the way in which this song stands out is that there is absolutely nothing compelling or original about it.

I am not a writer who feels the need to criticize everything that is current and popular in a search for hipster cred. But songs like this make me totally empathize with those who do. If you take every cliché you are already tired of, and then find the most generic way of expressing it, you might end up with a song that starts:

“Hey baby, won’t you tell me what you’ve got going on
Just a little later on tonight
How about you and me get together, have a couple drinks
Well, don’t you think that sounds like a good time”

No.

I would comment on the thin vocal performance, but I can’t hear past the AutoTune. Mark Bright’s production is perfectly serviceable, but completely unexciting. A lifeless drum track and colorless rhythm guitar are here and there accented with a few banjo notes, because this is a country song, dontchaknow.

The music video might actually be an even worse compilation of clichés. The band walking into a music room grabbing guitars off the wall which they use to play the song, the band stepping off the tour bus to go bowling, the band hanging out on Lower Broadway all jovial and affable, the band playing to a sold-out crowd of music video extras, and of course, the band playing on a Nashville rooftop at sunset.

*sigh*

While the song slowly managed to climb the radio charts, the sales figures have not followed suit. While it continues to get radio support, perhaps mainly because the label/publishing company/investors are making sure it does, listeners are (literally) not buying it. But with a CMA Awards nomination for Vocal Duo of the Year (which, I mean, just…no) there is a renewed effort to deliver a hit song with these guys.

And so, the song recently made its debut on the Billboard Hot 100 all-genre chart. Which is all the proof you need that some (but thankfully not all) radio hits are entirely manufactured by a marketing campaign.

 

 

Liv Carter

Liv Carter

Liv is a career coach for creatives, and the people who work with them.
She holds several certificates from Berklee College of Music, and a certificate in Positive Psychology from UC Berkeley.
Her main influences are coffee, cats, and Alexander Hamilton.
Liv Carter

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