Josh Groban’s newest CD, “All That Echoes,” is a wonderful example of his traditional crossover of classical music and pop. Groban uses grand orchestral segments and beautiful guitar lines to accompany the crooning vocals that have brought him immense success. By continuing to pursue that style, he is likely to stay beloved by his fans.
Groban borrows styles from other popular groups with his single “Brave” and the ballad “False Alarms.” He also continues to cover songs from artists such as Glen Hansard’s “Falling Slowly” and Stevie Wonder’s “I Believe.”
Groban is also trying new and unexpected songs on this album. On “All That Echoes,” he reworked the traditional Celtic songs “She Moved through the Fair” and “The Moon is a Harsh Mistress.” Groban is changing the style of some traditional songs from slow ballads into heart-wrenching showpieces. The covers of songs that change their traditional styles are a great change, and the changed song styles make for an interesting album.
Each song on “All that Echoes” shows a new side of Groban’s talent. “Brave” showcases his beautiful vocal skills with the mysterious use of strings to create a song that is upbeat, creative and powerful.
This style continues throughout. Groban’s cover of “Falling Slowly” slows down the tempo of the album to create a sexy romantic vibe while staying true to the sound of the rest of the songs.
Like every other Josh Groban album, there are traditional ballads, songs that tell stories and songs that are sung in a foreign language. One of the best storytelling songs is “She Moved through the Fair.” Listeners will be enchanted as the vocals express the emotion of the story. “E Ti Promettero” is a beautiful mix of classical music and a pop rock. This is also shown in the stunningly simplistic recording of “Sincera”.
The album does a good job of mixing the classical and traditional music that is beloved by Groban’s faithful fans, as well as the new style of upbeat and pop-sounding covers that he is introducing to his audience.
The duets are strong and melodic, the solos are moving, and the instrumental choices all combine to create an excellent album. Josh Groban has used his newfound love of theatrics, ostentatious orchestral instrumentation and beautifully simple songs to create an album that has all the qualities of a masterpiece.
Rating: Five stars
