Somber, haunting and rhythmic all describe the opening track to Karl McCann’s ‘Kxi’ album. ‘Good Things Will Rest’ sets the tone with a ghost-like vocal delivery over a raw guitar melody and rugged drums. ‘Ask For Forgiveness’ keeps the momentum going while slightly brightening up the tone the rough vocals add personality to the recording, similar to the idiosyncratic cover art- original, unique, sparse and complex all in one. ‘Kxi’ sonically translates to a beautifully mysterious painting, a consistent color palette and deep dark depth in the few colors used. Stripped down and raw Karl McCann delivers an honest album packed with character. ‘Just Another Shot’ upbeat in sound but dark in content- another interesting mesh in a painting of combined complimentary colors. ‘Kxi’ is an outstanding album with consistency and familiarity welded together with range and risk, the distorted acoustic beginning of ‘So Save Yourself’ coupled with the crisp programmed drum sounds creates a unique sound for Karl McCann. McCann has an LP that can be played from start to finish with depth enough for an immediate restart leaving the listener wanting to re-experience ‘Kxi’ right away.
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