Released 05/10/09, One Little Indian
Championing a band early in their development always involves a certain amount of risk. Yes you get the opportunity to take the finger-on-the-pulse high ground but, if that band turns out to be nowhere as good as you’d hoped and releases a dud album after six months of you beginning conversations with ‘there’s this brilliant new band called...’, you are going to feel like a pillock of the highest order and have your musical respect rights revoked.
Thus it was a with a slight sense of apprehension that I played Kill it Kid’s eponymous debut album for the first time, after nigh on a year of harping on about them to all and sundry Thankfully the fivesome have delivered a fantastic album, diverse and quite unlike anything else doing the rounds at the moment with its marvellous mash-up of delta blues, rootsy folk, and good old fashioned rock n’ roll.
New single and opener ‘Heaven Never Seemed So Close’ sets the tone, with an unrelenting cacophony of violins, fuzzy guitar, crashing drums and handclaps. Above everything is Chris Turpin’s unforgiving growl, a throwback to another musical time which brings to mind Tom Waits, Anthony Hegarty and the deep voiced beardy one from Gomez. Contrasted with this is Steph Ward’s smoky jazz tones, and the two harmony aggressively on the "going up going up going up going up" precursor to the chorus. ‘Burst Its Banks’, which follows, has an altogether gentler start with Richard Jones’s emotive violin leading the listener up a path that will eventually end in another all out jam.
‘Ivy and Oak’ is one of the growers of the album, and a revelation if you catch them live with its epic chorus of "my my, why you being so mean to me?" It’s a strong track, as is ‘Fool For Loving You’, the first time where we get a proper listen to Ward. Her thirties style bad-girl lilt duels with Turpin, and the huge, looping fast/slow nature of the song suggests a cross between a teary jazz ballad and a James Bond theme tune; a strange concoction, but an enduringly effective one.
‘Lord Send Me An Angel Down’ is the first in a triumvirate of slow tracks, and a real Waits-esque weeper to break up the blistering pace of the opening four songs. It has an achingly pretty violin over Turpin’s narrative and deep ‘ooh-ooh’s’, and though there’s an blockbuster breakdown in the middle where drummer Marc Jones gets to hammer away, it is one of the slowest paced songs on the album.
Not the slowest, mind, as that award goes to ‘Private Idaho’, which is primarily Ward’s song with only a hint of a low key backing vocal from Turpin. It’s a cheeky little ode to getting naughty with a secret lover in a grubby hotel, and is full of almost naive, sweet-yet-sultry vocals like "open butter fingers, tingle to his chest/every word we said became undressed" and "between Idaho’s faded sheets/ sinners soon learn to preach." Following this is the knees up of ‘My Lips Won’t Be Kept Clean’ which is straight out of a Saloon bar; it demands a ho-down, shootin’ whisky and slutty wenches trying to steal your wallet. ‘Troubles of Loretta’ changes the tone again, with its savage Jack White style guitar, driving rhythm section of Marc Jones and Adam Timmins and memorable chorus of "staring down the barrel of a hand-me-down borretta/ well that’s the troubles of Loretta."
‘Dirty Water’ is another epic, massive in every sense as Ward regales us with tales of the pleasure to be taken in what is bad for us; "dirty water tastes so sweet". Starting off timidly there’s little indication of the orchestral stomp that is to follow, with the ruthless guitars and violins that take a song with a 19th century folk heart and turn it into 21st century rocker. Final two songs ‘Bye Bye Bird’ and ‘Taste The Rain’ give no further quarter and finish the album with a cinematic flourish, not least ‘Bye Bye Bird’ and its repeated refrain of "I ain’t going down like that." ‘Taste The Rain’ is a quiet sign-off, with its gentle ascension towards the whispered "oh taste the rain/oh taste the rain". Turpin’s lyrics once more take on guilty pleasures, of that that shouldn’t be denied, and get wrapped up in an arrangement that would appeal to anyone that tunes into love song shows on commercial radio stations (this is meant as a compliment).
So, its pretty obvious that this has been a one way review so far. Is there anything not to like about this album? Well, there’s less of the playful nature that was evident on their earlier demo’s, but that’s only been replaced with an unfailingly huge sound throughout which might alienate some but very much appeals to a chest thumper like yours truly. Also, occasionally Turpin’s voice is a little bit low in the mix and could be a given the space to dominate that it deserves and that’s so evident when they play live.
One suspects they will divide opinion; if you don’t like Turpin’s voice you will not enjoy much of it. It is distinctive, guttural and contrasts perfectly with Ward’s silky pitch, but will probably not be for all. Fortunately I love it, as do I the style the band have gone with, this combination of the old and the new, the epic and the low key. Throughout its an album of contrasts with little filler and consistently strong, narrative driven songwriting; one that will probably not turn up in the end of year lists but absolutely should do because it is undoubtedly one of 2009’s best records.
Posted In Album Reviews, Oct 04 2009.
Words - David