Eisley feels rare. They don’t exist
in their original form anymore, but when I first started listening to them
(thanks again, mom) it was a group of siblings and cousins, every one of them
young and talented. Now, the band is primarily fronted by Sherri DuPree Bemis,
one of the original sisters who led the cascading harmonies and vocals on their
songs. She is married to Max Bemis of Say Anything, and they have an insanely
gorgeous family that Sherri posts about on Instagram a lot. I’m definitely not
in the age bracket of her typical followers, but it’s really amazing to see how
down to earth they are, and the eclectic, artistic ways they’re raising their
kids.
Eisley feels like a family band.
Not just because they are a family, and all the siblings have gone on to have
massive, beautiful families of their own that I follow on social media, but
also because my entire family loves them. I have a vague memory of planning to
emulate them with my sister, both of us planning to learn how to sing as well
as the DuPree sisters and starting a band. Their songs are so fun to sing along
to. I remember putting this album on when I was alone in the house, blasting it
loud enough to cover my own wonky pitch to feel like I was singing with them, a
pod of best friends who happen to be related. I also remember recording myself
singing these songs, playing them back to myself to see if I could sing.
Obviously, I wasn’t very good, as my sister and I are decidedly not in a band
together touring the world.
Lost at Sea was my favorite track
when I was younger, because I would pretend to literally be lost at sea,
singing along as if it was my own soundtrack as I navigated the waves. Now, off
this album, I love Brightly Wound the most. The song always reminds me of my sister
and I around the holidays, which is bittersweet when I won’t be seeing her this
thanksgiving. A fun shout out is Just Like We Do, a song I sent to a girl I
liked in high school to try to tell her (unsuccessfully) that I had a crush on
her. Either she knew and didn’t care, or I was just too subtle. Or that song
sounds more like a lullaby than a love song but honestly I stand by the attempted
romance!
Anyway, I’ve only seen Eisley live
once. They played in some strange room that functioned as a daycare during the
week, and a concert venue on the weekends. It was fantastic. They have a whole
conglomerate of other bands the original members play in, pairing with spouses
and other musicians to form at least five groups. They usually put out a
Christmas album, which I have on repeat throughout December, but this album
remains my favorite of theirs.
You can listen to the album here
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