f Rock/Pop/Punk/Alternative is your style of music, Jeff Keyson is the artist for you. Based out of San Diego, Keyson is stepping out with some great music on his new EP “See You Around.”  With the re-emergence of bands such as Blink-182 and the success of newer bands such as We the Kings, and the continued careers of bands such as Green Day, this type of music is on people’s minds these days.  Jeff Keyson is someone with the ability to create music comparable to these established acts, and should be able to have more mainstream success in the music world.

“Mind Over Cali” featuring JAEO is a modern Pop tune with a futuristic sound and a good beat. Keyson’s voice is decent on the song, but he uses Autotune a bit too liberally. This is a shame because his singing doesn’t really need this enhancement. But the effect does work well with the other electronic blips and bleeps heard throughout the song. Then rapper JAEO enters into the track mid-song, adding more spice to the mix. His rap skills are hot, and add more interesting elements to the catchy tune. On “Face In the Crowd,” the song starts out with a nice piano driven tune that grabs the listeners’ attention. Keyson’s voice is good, and he shows range by nailing both higher and lower notes. The crunchy guitars and piano complement his voice, and the whole composition makes for a very radio-friendly song. This particular track brings to mind other Pop/Alternative bands such as Hot Chelle Rae, whose popular song Tonight, Tonight is very similar to Keyson’s.  Keyson can give any of those bands a run for their money.  “See You Around” is an upbeat,  Emo/Pop confection that is catchy and infectious.  The fast tempo and chord changes are classic Pop/Punk, all the way down to the na-na-nas in the chorus.  Even the pronunciation of certain words is expected in Pop/Punk compositions.  Keyson successfully brings all of these elements into this song, and the skillful drumming and thrashing guitars add to overall positive effect.  This song would also work well on the radio and would be popular with fans of this type of music.

Jeff Keyson is a talented young artist who creates solid, catchy, Pop/Punk/Rock songs that would have a lot of commercial success.  He uses all the ingredients needed to put together good Rock/Pop songs that stay in your head.  With continued hard work and perseverance, Keyson has a long career ahead of him!

Vocals: 3.5 Beats:4.0 Concepts: 3.5