Eli Raybon - The Green EP (Self Released)

Born and bred in the American south, Eli Raybon has done everything in his skinny armed, neophyte power to prove himself a pop sensation power and return synth-infused pop to the collective consciousness. And if that objective at all seems like a long shot, outlets like Vice> and Paste have already endorsed him as a maestro of the form.

On The Green EP his 4-song release, Raybon offers a sample of what he does best and that’s groom sinewy, infectious pop tracks that are hard to turn off, even after the ear buds pop out. He brings a slithery, dark cornered feeling to Like An Eel and is confident enough to turn it down a notch for an epic dose of melancholy on Sucker Me In. On both of these tracks the production is a wonderful compliment to his play, pairing his voice with the instruments, giving it all a washed out and mechanized feel.

If there is something to offer contrary on Raybon as poppy, songwriting genius, it’s that he lacks lyrical patience (much different than lacking skill or ingenuity). A few times it feels like he has trouble tailoring his imagination to the proverbial line. On 30 Cents a fast paced dance number, it feels like Raybon struggles to jam all the verbiage in. Does that make it a bad song? Not necessarily, but it makes me wonder about his confidence, and his trust in his listeners to allow us to fill in those blanks.

Overall, The Green EP features four great tracks but it is altogether too brief. Raybon has a depth, you can feel it in his songwriting, but what he needs now is time to sort it out.