Adam Whittock

This may not be KOLs greatest ever album (as we all know, it doesn’t even breach their own top 4) and if you’re looking for ‘fun’ then this is not that. But it’s far better than anything they’ve produced since the early 10s and it’s a sonically interesting, somewhat experimental album to boot. It also ‘works’; there is a great synchronicity to the sound that has been missing since the Come Around Sundown/Mechanicsl Bull period. Better still it all appears so natural. Like they’ve really reconnected with songwriting and song construction in a way that isn’t merely bellowing out some lyrics, haphazardly coming out with a ‘section’ and artificially stitching it all together in the production. No, there is a ‘gel’ here, detectable throughout the album. Caleb tends to dominate but the intricate weaving and movement of Jared and Matthew is really quite great and Nathan’s drums sound brilliant in either fore- or background, whenever suits, to fit the pattern of the piece. This can’t be done in post-production. It has come about through playing relentlessly with each other, forging ideas and creating musical relationships that already do the work. Is the music actually any good, then? Well, kinda. The music is clever, good to listen to and solid. But it’s hardly groundbreaking. And it’s not anything like their early work which we all know and love. It’s still, although it pains me to say it, like their last five albums in being far too clean. Despite its bubbling, natural musicality, the sound is mostly mundane. I like it, don’t get me wrong, but it’s no Fans, nowhere near Slow Night, So Long and certainly no Sex on Fire. Indeed, sex has been unashamedly tossed aside (if you pardon the pun) in favour of light, lounge-based chitter-chatter. It’ll do though, for the time being. It’s positive in that they are still making good(ish) music into their ninth album, a feat in itself. That alone holds promise. Oh and the last track, ‘Seen’ is already clearly one of the best sounding tracks they’ve ever made. It’s a banger. Too bad the approach to it fails to dazzle in quite the same way. For that reason this is actually a 3.5 stars out of 5, not 4, but Google won’t let me do that. Silly Google. Still - viva la Kings!