“Now you’re just somebody that I used to know”; once a lyric that Kimbra sung with Indie-oddball Gotye, now a triumphant farewell as a new phoenix rises from the ashes.
Kimbra is one of those artists that not everybody will get, but those who do become completely spellbound by her artistry; her voice has inimitable strength and skill, her lyricism is elastic and always has a strong story to tell, her musicality brings a certain reminiscence to modern soundscapes and as a person, she is simply magnetic.
Her debut album ‘Vows’ remains one of the finest debuts of the 2010’s so far, so there was worry about how second album ‘The Golden Echo’ would avoid the dreaded “Sophomore Slump” that causes so many artists to dwindle. Fortunately, Kimbra is a natural born shapeshifter, and with these chameleonic powers, her sonic explorations perform box-breaking alchemy to turn her creations into mutants borne from aural effervescence.
The frenzied lead single ‘90’s Music’ is the most stupefying creation on the record. Jam-packed with a multitude of sounds and genres, the fractured ‘90’s Music’ runs and stumbles like a manic Frankenstein’s Monster that’s broken a seam and is erupting with volatile energy.
‘Carolina’ throws you for a loop as it catapults you into glistening oriental soundscapes topped with multiple hazy vocal lines. ‘Goldmine’ is a rebellious West Coast Hip-Hop spirit that takes beats from African Blues adorned with the elegant soul of Erykah Badu.
Kimbra is never shy about using her astonishingly wide vocal range, and this is probably most evident on the explosive ‘Miracle’; a shining moment that is so spotless and unapologetically disco, it could inspire Daft Punk to do the disco point and blush so powerfully, the red light would burn right through their masks. There’s a certain Janet Jackson swagger in the snarling Space Funk jam that is ‘Madhouse’ that’s been layered with the brazen attitude of Prince in his steamier moments.
‘Love In High Places’ is like a wobbly, ballad spin on ‘90’s Music’; deliriously dreamy production that ricochets from the calamitous walls of the instrumentation.
The morbid smile and ironic grip of ‘Waltz Me To The Grave’ closes the album with dreamy melodic acrobatics and incongruously enjoyable instrumentation.
Although an artist of acquired taste, Kimbra successfully shifts from genre to genre throughout the album; From the saccharine R&B slow jam of ‘Teen Heat’ to the rumbling Electronica of ‘Everlovin’ Ya’, from the luxuriant piano balladry of ‘As You Are’ to the Motown/Neo-Soul infused ‘Nobody But You’. The Golden Echo rings true to it’s name as Kimbra revives the greats of the 1980’s with perfect execution and infectious joy.
The Golden Echo is available now.
Watch the video for ‘Miracle’ below