Vidual –

La Lune –

Alright, so I wanted to also dedicate one of the Monday LPs to highlight an album released specifically last year. As mentioned last week, 2017 was a pretty amazing year for music. If I had to come up with just one thing that defined the year’s music, it was the “comebacks” from bands who had been on hiatus for years. This list includes such impressive bands like the Fleet Foxes, Gorillaz, and LCD Soundsystem. And that’s not including the albums that had multiple years of work and hype put into their projects, like the ones Lorde, Queens of the Stone Age, The XX, and The Foo Fighters all released. And while it would be impossible for me to pick an “album of the year”, I did want to choose an album that is a fine example of a record that really stood out amongst the comebacks.

The OOZ (2017), by King Krule. Wow. What a record! A full double-LP album with solid song after solid song that adds up to over a full hour of music. The ultimate reason I ended up choosing this one though probably has to do with my first impression of the album, which (surprise!) wasn’t actually too positive ^^;

First off, who is King Krule? “King Krule” is really the second stage name of the very young musician Archy Marshall. He originally began recording music under the name of “Zoo Kid” at the age of 15 in 2010. The genre of his music is extremely hard to nail down with just one word, but if I was given two words, they would be “dark jazz.” And yet, even that doesn’t really incapsulate his punk vocals, the occasional surf rock guitar riffs, or sometimes the slow rap sections. Even if you’re not a big fan of his musical style, it’s indisputably unique and instantly recognizable, which should say at least something about the music.

Tested and treated (often incorrectly) for a multitude of mental health issues while growing up, he often makes mention of his struggle with depression and insomnia in his lyrics. Several tracks are also filled with distinct love stories, while other songs become abstract in meaning and rhyme. The record The OOZ would spawn three singles before its release, “Czech One”, “Dum Surfer”, and “Half Man Half Shark”. While I would probably now consider them some of the best the album has to offer, all three didn’t really click with me on my first listen. I could easily understand the critical praise for his uniqueness, but it was a uniqueness that didn’t honestly strike me as something I would find myself earnestly listening to. Those three singles do a great job of hoisting his “freak flag” pretty high, but I initially mistook that as all his music was about. After listening through his full length album though, my opinion radically changed.

King Krule masterfully crafts slow, quiet songs along with intense, dark tunes. The OOZ is impressively paced with highs and lows, making sure every song is exactly where it needs to be. In an attempt to insure you give King Krule a solid first listen, I figured I’d discuss two lesser known tracks from the album. The first one is “Vidual”, which is a great example of the more surf-rock side of his music, even dabbling into psychobilly. The title is short for “individual” and is meant to express how Archy does not see himself as a “collective” personality and tends to keep his distance from others. The lyrics are filled with dark images and becomes more and more surreal as the song progresses, but ultimately tells the story of a toxic relationship that ends with both sides badly burned.

The other tune, “La Lune”, is on the opposite side of the spectrum in musical style and tone. The title is the French word for “The Moon” and features some of his more cryptic lyrics from the album. The tune is hauntingly beautiful, with different guitar tracks prancing around a simple, grounding bass part and two harmonizing vocal parts from Archy. If these peak your interest, I’d implore you to go check out the rest of the album or at least the three singles. If the second song is what caught your ear more though, then I’d actually direct you towards his previous album, 6 Feet Beneath the Moon relleased back in 2013. It features more of this quieter, stripped down sound, with several songs made up of just him and his electric guitar.

This is an album the I really wanted to highlight from last year, but there really were just so many noteworthy records as well. Apart from the comeback albums, there were also the impressive albums by Moses Sumney, St. Vincent, and others that don’t really fall into this category. And don’t forget about the ridiculous FIVE albums that King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard were able to put out in just the span of one year! Hopefully, I’ll try to cover some of those records before too long…