Just when I'd nearly given up on looking for any talent in any artist that had been picked up by the major pop idol making machine along comes Teddy Geiger. This guy is a 16-year-old musician songwriter who has a lot of talent. While he has a full CD on the way (due to be released in February) this six song EP shows much promise. He is (from the looks of things) about ready to be fully pulled into the hit making, pop-idol-constructing end of the music business. He has the looks for it, is about to star in a network television show and just did the opening slot on a huge pop concert tour. If you are like me, you generally don't expect to see a lot of talent in the artists who run that race. Geiger is certainly an exception to that rule. He has a great voice - no lip synching here, is a multi-instrumentalist and shows a natural gift for quality song writing. This guy is a legitimate, albeit not fully developed, talent.

Geiger's music seems to share a lot with the folk rock oriented ballad type music of the 1970's. That said, from his own admission he listens only to newer music - so those links must come secondhand through his interest in artists like Dave Matthews, Ben Folds and Jason Mraz - all of whom have strong ties to that older style Whatever the case may be this EP shows that Geiger can play and sing with the best of them, and while his songwriting is a bit derivative at this point, it shows a high degree of talent and maturity. What artist isn't at least a little derivative on their first couple releases, anyway? Most of the songs here are based on acoustic guitar, but a couple are constructed around piano - I did say he is a multi instrumentalist. All of them are entertaining slices of mellow pop rock, and they all show a certain musical integrity.

Bearing in mind the fact that Geiger has been snapped up by the media machine that is the big time music/media industry, I worry about his future. If he can stick to his guns and use his own musical insights and instincts, he should be able to have a long lasting and artistically viable career. However, my guess is that there are going to be a lot of handlers around him who are more interested in image and marketing than in musical integrity trying to get him to change his sound or look or lyrical content to sell a few more CD's. I hope he has the will power to resist them and stick with what he knows. This is a great start for a promising artist. I really hope he stays on his own path and holds tight on the reins of his artistic adventure. If it doesn't get watered down by the media machine it should be a bold and exciting one.

This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2005 Year Book Volume 3 at https://garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2005.