Let’s get this out of the way right now; Love & Theft aren’t traditional country music nor are they even another Rascal Flatts. In fact, the trio of Stephen Barker Liles, Brian Bandas and Eric Gunderson gained attention from labels due to their strong songwriting and three-part vocal style that hasn’t been done all that often by other country trios. With their debut single “Runaway,” the trio show off their harmonies within a thoroughly modern contemporary country confection that is catchy, and memorable.
Written by Barker Liles with Rob Blakledge and C.L. Smith, “Runaway” is one of the catchiest modern Country songs you’re likely to have heard so far in 2009. The production by Jeff Coplan and Robert Ellis Orrall accentuates the trio’s harmonies quite well. While I can see the argument about this band (they do write and play multiple instruments) being vaguely Country (thanks to mandolins and other country instruments washed in the mix), I’ve long held to the notion that Country music isn’t a static sound of tear in your beer honky tonk songs and can and should include a broader sound of something like “Runaway,” especially when it’s made as well as this song is.
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