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Knuckledragger

By Knuckledragger
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Knuckledragger
Knuckledragger

HAH.  Just got an email from Mixclown: "Test Tone 03/12/21 is now 19th in the global Idm chart."

Knuckledragger
Knuckledragger

Welp, last two weeks have been a headache with regard to showreels.  Two weeks ago, while attempting to connect the mic to my mixer, I jostled the Thunderbolt cable enough to cause a momentary disconn

Knuckledragger
Knuckledragger

This coming Friday is the birthday of this handsome fella: I totally haven't spent the evening going through YouTube videos of him giving lectures to find quips to sample for my show.

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Knuckledragger Super Secret Ultra Gold Member

Knuckledragger

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Phew.  Writing up a review of KSIA's first album is gonna take a bit so I cranked out one for their Campus Martius EP.

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KSIA Campus Martius E.P.

 

An early KSIA release from the Sarah P era, and an absolutely essential one ...for exactly one song on it.  The stunning remix of Solar Bears' "Cub" is arguably still KSIA's greatest work.  It's such a departure from the original that it is effectively a new work that samples the original.  I am biased here because it was one of the first if not THE first KSIA songs I ever heard.  It introduced me to their unique brand of sedated synthwave beats and female vocals under an ocean depth amount of reverb.  Sarah's vocals are very emotive here, if it's more or less impossible to make out what's she's actually saying.  This is fairly common theme with early KSIA.  Sarah's vocal work is very rhythmic and full of repeated phrases.  In spite of the repetition and lack of clarity, she manages to convey a story told to the listen emotionally, if not through discernible worlds.  The Cub remix illustrates what would become a hallmark of great KSIA tracks: tension and release.  The breakdown in the middle is full of classic KSIA synth work and a guitar solo that fits in with the rest of the song perfectly.  It's almost club music for a moment.  Sarah returns with another repeated phrase that's somehow even more compelling.  I liken this part of the song to driving a motor cycle on the edge of a cliff that during a full moon.  Then the song ends both too early and just the right time.

The rest of the EP is a very mixed bag, and not of it exactly stellar.  The Chains is a downright shock after the euphoric journey of the Cub remix.  Having re-visted it repeatedly on and off for a decade I maintain that exactly nothing works about it.  At least it's short.  The title track is an odd experiment.  It reminds me of mid 00s IDM more than anything I'd associate with KSIA.  It's glitchy, skittery and has a piano melody that's sufficiently pleasant.  The problem is that it's largely forgettable the moment it's over.  Also, the pitch shifted vocal sample is irritating.  Struggle With Yourself is far better than the previous two tracks, which makes it a comparative standout.  Sarah's vocals are largely ineffective here, and the production is at best "also ran" by KSIA's standards.  It feels like a B-side and a weak one at that.

One out of the four tracks on here is worth listening to, but it's so good that this release could effectively be a single and it'd still be essential for anyone interested in the group.  The Cub remix remains one of my most played KSIA songs.  It embodies everything that worked about the original lineup of RPR and Sarah P.  It's a classic piece of chillwave.  It's genre-defining.

There might be a few typos.  I'm tired.

This is what all the fuss is about.

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Knuckledragger Super Secret Ultra Gold Member

Knuckledragger

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Still working on the review for KSIA's first album.  Something I've been putting off for 5-6 years now.  In the interim, I wrote up a review for their first EP from late 2010:

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A significant release for two reasons:  It launched the career of Keep Shelly in Athens, and the opening track.  Running Out Of You is of course an absolute classic that will prove to be a timeless piece of music.  Over a decade later it's one of the best thing KSIA ever did, with or without their original vocalist Sarah P.  Besides the heavily sedated synthwave sonic blueprint and siren like vocals under half a mile of reverb, one of KSIA's trademarks are the tension and release of their best tracks.  Anyone who likes the song of course thinks of the massive synth riff at 2:44.  The riff are indeed mighty, but they would not be nearly as effective without the slow buildup that precedes them.  The synthesis itself is not much more than a retro 1980s string patch run through some decidedly modern reverb effects (a combination that sums up much of KSIA.)  There's a passing resemblance to Europe's "The Final Countdown" and I say that without a hint of sarcasm.  The dueling synth melodies and heavy percussion are euphoric and reminiscent of a mid 90s progressive house anthem in the best possible way.   Sarah's vocals are pensive and wistful throughout the song.  She remains cool and detached sounding even as the energy of the song rises exponentially.  She's singing a tale of love, conflict and woe but it will be about all a listener can do to actually understand the lyrics.  Again, this is a fairly common trope with KSIA of this vintage.  In a similar fashion to the brilliant remix of Solar Bears' "Cub" that KSIA did a year later, "Running Out Of You" ends both too early and at just the right time.  The listener is left satisfied and wanting more.  The song is possibly the most iconic one in KSIA catalogue, and for good reason.

The rest of the EP bears another hallmark of KSIA: their astounding inconsistency.  "Fokionos Negri Street" employs another technique that RPR used in a lot of early productions: pitch shifted vocal samples that would sound at home in a future garage track.  They never fail to irritate me.  Sarah's vocals are completely lost in the mix and not in the blissful way of more successful KSIA works.  Cremona Memories (it's actually misspelled as "Cremonia Memories" in the ID3 tags of at least one of the web releases; the information age is weird) is far better than the song that precedes it, but is still at best an also-ran.  The overly repetitive main synth riff and vocals are more irritating than effective.  Rainy Night is just a simple mood piece.  It feels like the intro to a completely different release.  Conversely, Don't Be Afraid is quite a compelling song and would be the standout of the EP were it not for the titanic opener.  It's slinky and sexy, with a solid arpeggiations and alluring sax riff.  Sarah's vocals are running through what sounds like a slight vocoding and a bit of delay as well as KSIA's signature reverb.  The song is more groovy and uptempo in feel (if not BPM) that most of what the band produced in their early days, but in this case it's quite effective.  Finally, the EP's title track is a nice bit of lo-fi sounding synthesis with a decent melody.  Sarah shows up for a couple "woos" here and there, but other than that remains silent.  It's a nice little outtro track and nothing more.  A fine way to close out the EP, but otherwise unremarkable.

Weirdly, the video for Running Out Of You is not on the YouTubes, but it is on Vimeo:

 

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