The name Drew Seeley might not ring a bell, but for countless kids (and adults), his voice should sound familiar: Drew was responsible for providing most (probably the vast majority) of the vocals for the character of Troy (played by Zac Efron) in High School Musical. The official line is that Drew and Zac's voices were "blended" because Zac has a lower singing voice than much of the music required, but both Zac and Drew have said that most of the singing is Drew's. With Zac off filming the movie version of Hairspray, Drew has stepped in to play the role of Troy on the High School Musical tour. Drew has song on another Disney soundtrack, and rumor has it he may release an album at some point. for now, though, you can listen to some of his work over at his official website; it's pleasant enough pop, but I hope he's saving his best stuff for the album, or will work with some really good producers and writers if he starts to record one. His voice sometimes reminds me of what Josh Hoge would sound like with a less gruff voice.Get'cha Head In The Game--this song is from High School Musical (which I finally saw a few weeks ago!) and it's one of the most fun songs in the movie. Drew co-wrote it and does all the singing (except the backing vocals, I presume) in it--there's no Zac. For those who haven't seen the movie (which is probably no one--I think I was the last person on Earth who had any interest in it to see it), the song is sung during basketball practice (hence the bouncing balls and squeaking sneakers sound effects), with Troy distracted by thoughts of the musical he wants to audition for and a girl.
Hello & Goodbye--one of Drew's own songs. It's on the ballad/mid-tempo side, but was still one of the first to jump out at me. To be a breakout star, Drew's music needs to get an extra spark from somewhere, but for just a sweet pop song without pretensions, this is nice.
Caught Up--many of Drew's songs don't have the "pure pop" sound of the High School Musical sound, though they're still pop; I'm not sure what genre's elements this is borrowing, but whatever genre it is, it's part of the reason that I'm reminded of Josh Hoge (though it's not a perfect parallel my any means, and Drew's songs, as I've mentioned, need polishing, and he definitely needs some brand new songs before he should consider releasing an album). I see potential, though (even though I'm not sure what would be the best way for him to utilize his voice--it's not typical), and I'll be paying attention to what he does in the future; we need a young male popstar who's popular in the U.S.
To buy the soundtrack for High School Musical, go here (physical) or here (digital); you can't buy any of the other songs by Drew Seeley yet, but you can visit his official website and download some more songs by him.
Next up: maybe a hidden song from a boy band's album or a song and a cover of it by an ex- and now re-boy band member.
5 comments:
How interesting that he's now going as "Drew" all of a sudden, rather than his full name of "Andrew," which he was known as a mere few months ago.
I actually just watched HSM yesterday for the first time since the summer... and yes, I own the DVD. It's so funny to hear "Breaking Free," the biggest hit off the HSM soundtrack, since Zac actually sings the first line, then, er, "Drew" does the rest of vocals -- and he clearly sings an octave higher than Zac.
You're totally right about these songs needing polishing. Actually, they're a decent showcase for his voice, but he needs to work on songwriting hooks a bit. These are really bland.
Couldn't agree more--I sort of wanted to write about him as a "heads-up" that he might do things in the future, but there's no way he should be releasing an album soon.
sigh - who doesn't love HSM. I remain stunned that it took you so long to watch it. I so want to waste my money on the "remix" dvd that is out too!! hehe... the only reason i don't write about HSM every day is because you would all desert me in droves :)
I don't know why it took me so long either! When I finally did watch it, it was the "pop-up edition," so there were these annoying pop up sounds throughout the whole thing (and though sometimes the pop-ups were interesting, a lot of the time it felt like someone had to really stretch to come up with it). And you know I wouldn't stop reading, but can't speak for everyone else ;)
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