Tobias Jesso Jr. is Coming to The Echo

With an initial demo born out of heartache and heartbreak, Tobias Jesso Jr. has come a long way to become one of music’s most talked about artists. Now he has a debut album under his belt and will be playing The Echo on April 4.

Born and raised in Canada, he got his start in the background. He was the bassist for The Sessions and after that moved on to play for teen singer Melissa Cavatti. Then two years ago, he decided that it was his turn in the spotlight, and took the chance to turn a dismal reality into something more.

He’d lived in Los Angeles for four years before returning home and taking work as a mover. It was during that time that he started working around with the piano. Soon after, he wrote “Just A Dream.” Then in 2013, he was hit with not one, but two misfortunes. His mother was diagnosed with cancer, and he went through a harsh breakup. He turned sadness into art and took to writing what eventually be his first solo demo. He put those songs in an email to former Girls’ member JR White. It was uphill from there.

That demo went on to be produced by not only White but also some of the biggest names in music from Patrick Carney of The Black Keys to John Collins of The New Pornographers. That was two years ago and today “Goon” was released in March and to great critical response. Pitchfork gave it an 8.5 and said, “With its clear debt to a specific era, ‘Goon’ has a meta quality, an album of music that illustrates the power of music.”

With major blogs backing it, music fans who hadn’t been on Jesso’s tail before now had a reason to tune in. His piano-based music started to resonate with everyday people as well as famous faces like Adele and Alana Haim who both tweeted about his track “How Could You Babe.”

He’s only played the piano a few years now, but he’s already proven to be a master of it. He has often been compared to artists who reigned supreme in the ‘60s and ‘70s like Randy Newman and Emitt Rhodes.

Tobias Jesso Jr. kicked off his first major tour in March and it hits Los Angeles at The Echo on April 4. Tickets can be purchased here.