It was a long hard day at the office, and I followed it up with some volunteer work for good measure. The combination has left me a bit knackered. Fortunately, one of the best pick-me-ups from a knackering is new music. I’ve been using this method now for fifteen years (yes, I’ve been doing this that long) and it hasn’t failed me yet.
Disc 1726 is…Cool Dry Place
Artist: Katy Kirby
Year of Release: 2021
What’s up with the Cover? What is worse here, the outfit or the posture? Both suggest a lot of laziness, but only one of them is going to give Kirby back trouble later in life.
In addition to bad outfit and posture choices, Katy has decided to stand in a field of cacti. While this is demonstrably a “cool, dry place” it is also a prickly one.
How I Came To Know It: I read a review of this album and it sounded sufficiently intriguing for me to check out. I liked what I heard and so…here we are.
How It Stacks Up: Katy Kirby is a relatively new artist, and only has two albums so far. I have them both and put “Cool Dry Place” at #2.
Rating: 3 stars
A number of years ago I had a cat who was a bit of a yowler. He voiced how he felt about whatever was going on with him, or whatever was going on near him, and he did it with little grace. He was black, but I trow he had a fair bit of Siamese in him. When he was particularly off his rocker, I’d give him a snuggle and whisper “true beauty enters only the quietest of souls”. This usually did not work.
Listening to Katy Kirby reminds me of that whisper. She sings in a light, atmospheric kind of way that leaves your heart rested and full. It isn’t the best for driving, working out or generally anything that doesn’t provide close and quiet attention, but it is lovely.
Kirby’s music is an indie folk/pop crossover. She’s similar to Samia and any number of other artists in this style that evidently appeals to me, because I keep buying them. Early on in my journey through this record I was regretting this decision. I was in the car, and then working out, and just not feeling it (see above as to why). However, over time I reminded myself to quieten my soul and listen and sure enough, it revealed its beauty to me.
When “Cool Dry Place” is working, it envelopes you in its whimsy like a wispy summer cloud. One of those high up cirrus numbers. The music has upbeat melodies, saturated with arrangements that are layered and relaxed. Imagine all the album sounds are that part of an outdoor festival a bit back from the stage but still within earshot; still lots of stuff going on, but room in between to sway a bit and catch some sun.
“Traffic!” is a good example. This song bounces along with an easy joy. This ain’t Jimi Hendrix-style urgent traffic, this is the kind of traffic for when you’ve got the top down, and you’re in no particular hurry to be anywhere, perfectly happy to wave at pedestrians, let two or three cars merge in front of you and enjoy the stereo a bit.
The title track is also a standout, featuring the top end of Kirby’s sweet and breathy vocals. This song has the gentle sway you’d want from a tune that is, at its heart, a tremulous expression of love. It is a song that invites the question “do you like me, and if you do, what will happen next?” It reflects a fair bit of uncertainty but it does it from a place of curiosity that makes it hard to be afraid of what’s next. More nervously excited.
When the album isn’t going well, it can fall into the saccharine. Songs like “Fireman” are a bit too twee, even for Kirby’s perfectly-suited vocals to pull off. “Secret Language” riffs off of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” but that promising start is not realized. Instead, it loses focus, and gets drowned in production choices that are a bit too dreamy to hold your attention.
While the record is uneven, it never offends, and shows Kirby’s promise and talent throughout. It is hard to listen to this record and not feel a bit more chilled out when you’re done and sometimes that’s just what you need. I give it three stars, hold the yowls.
Best tracks: Traffic!, Portals, Cool Dry Place
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