Stand By You

Stand By You

Burlington, Ontario, ensemble Walk off the Earth initially went viral in the early 2010s with their rustic renditions of megahits like PSY’s “Gangnam Style” and Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used to Know”; a decade later, they’ve become a band intent on crafting towering pop anthems of their own. But if Walk off the Earth have outgrown their humble, homespun roots, they’ve retained certain signature qualities: their infectious exuberance and the percussive momentum that fuels their songs. Stand by You exemplifies their unique ability to invest folk-festival songcraft with dance-tent energy, while highlighting the band’s broad, cross-generational appeal: “My Stupid Heart” amplifies its air of party-hearty bonhomie with tropically tinged beats and chant-along hooks, but its earworm chorus also easily lends itself to a “kids’ version” sung by the children of lead vocalists Gianni Nicassio and Sarah Blackwood. And even in the post-genre landscape of early-2020s pop, Walk off the Earth’s effortless fluidity remains something to behold, as the group sounds equally at home dropping R&B jams with California rapper D Smoke (“Bet on Me”) and kicking out brassy New Wave romps with adult-contemporary rockers Train (“Oh My My! [In Love Again]”).

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