House OF EchO is a mainstream-rock band formed in the DC metropolitan area that draws comparisons to super-groups like Maroon 5, Dave Mathews Band, Sting and The Police, while breaking new ground in the genre of contemporary rock. The band is the brainchild of singer-songwriter David Tauler (aka EchO) who set out to record a solo project in 2004 and built a rock band along the way.
PERHAPS IT’S IRONICALLY FITTING that the nation’s capital, where divisions often rage, has given birth to a musical act that promises to cross more than a few boundaries. Grounded by smart lyrics and creative instrumentation, Washington, DC-based quintet House of EchO, offers its listeners a mash-up of rock, funk, and soul. By melding rock guitar with funky drums and bass and gospel-inflected keys, what began as one man’s solo project has emerged as an engaging musical hybrid. The selections off the band’s demo offer plenty of sonic punch. Singer-songwriter David Tauler (a.k.a. EchO) sounds like a cross between Dave Matthews and Toby Mac – gritty, yet soulful with a spiritual bent. First single “Can You See Me” ponders why the object of Tauler’s affection (“a shooting star that shoots the other way”) is blind to his devotion. Best of all, however, is the bittersweet good-bye “Fly Away”. (“This is your time to be a star/I want to hold you tight/But I can’t hold back the night,” Tauler confesses in the chorus.) As the guitar solo crescendos into the heavens, you might find your own admiration for this up-andcoming band taking flight.
To learn more about the band and to hear some of their music, check out their website at www.houseofecho.com
