Artist William Beckett

On top of his work with The Academy Is..., a popular Chicago-based emo-pop outfit, William Beckett has also worked with Fall Out Boy, Gym Class Heroes, and Cobra Starship. So, if nothing else, Beckett has got a knack for channeling teenage angst into overwrought melodic hooks. This being the case, there was no reason why he wouldn’t he attempt a solo career after the breakup of his former band. Is it possible that without the expectations of a suburban, Hot Topic-shopping fan base, Beckett could have used his newfound freedom to make the sort of deep singer-songwriter music he always wanted to make? It may have been possible, and that may have been what he wanted to do—but it didn’t pan out. Touring for his new solo EP, Walk The Talk, Beckett is playing the same brand of overproduced, saccharine teen anthems The Academy Is... played. 

Updated 05/02/2012