Advertisement

Album reviews Music

King Krule – 6 Feet Beneath The Moon

KING KRULE plays Wrongbar September 11. See listing. Rating: NNN


In recent years, it seems like younger musicians (and filmmakers, for that matter) increasingly prefer to incorporate all of their influences – no matter how superficially disparate – into a postmodern style (invariably labelled “genre-defying”) rather than adhere to accepted conventions of, say, folk, rock or R&B.

Londoner Archy Marshall is one such act. On his debut full-length, the 19-year-old prodigy entwines Django Reinhardt jazz guitar riffs, J. Dilla-style sampling, post-punk and post-pubescent Tom Waits howling into a singular aesthetic that is consistent and compelling even when his songwriting is not.

More like a sketchbook than a songbook, 6 Feet Beneath The Moon apparently includes songs written when Marshall was 12. It’s a meandering, angsty and deceptively gritty chronicle of the wonder years, but on repeat listens his guttural, conversational drawl and textured production seem to camouflage some seriously sentimental feelings.

That interesting tension takes the album beyond aesthetic exercise and toward epic self-mythologizing territory.

Top track: A Lizard State

Advertisement

Exclusive content and events straight to your inbox

Subscribe to our Newsletter

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

By signing up, I agree to receive emails from Now Toronto and to the Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions.

Recently Posted