Revisited - 6 Feet Beneath The Moon

If you're were a intrepid internet explorer in the late 2000s, you might have stumbled across a certain somebody's bandcamp account. At that time Archy Marshall was working under the moniker Zoo Kid and he was beginning to generate buzz with his lo-fi style of music. A couple of years after this, he adopted the name King Krule and began creating a full-length album. This he called 6 Feet Beneath The Moon. 

In his teens, Marshall suffered from insomnia. He would regularly stay up all night listening to bands like The Pixies and The Libertines. Doolittle by the former he claims is his favourite album. Listening to these bands allowed his to create soundscapes. After creating and mixing a series of singles and EP's in his bedroom under various aliases, King Krule released 6 Feet Beneath The Moon  on August 24th 2013.

Right from the off, Marshall has you hooked like a fish. The album is draped in genres, making it almost impossible to pin down. That in itself makes this album a very intriguing concept. Album opener 'Easy Easy' sets the tone. A basic guitar intro paves the way for Marshall's gritty, distinctive voice. It's like nothing you've ever heard before. The tone he generates is incredible and at seemingly minimal effort, because as the song builds his voice gets louder and emotive. The tone is set for the album, putting Marshall's voice at the centre of everything and the instrumentation is there purely as support. 

Easy Easy (Live)

The second track is the slightly bluesier 'Border Line'. Compared to the opener, it's mellow and to an extent soothing, until about one minute in when a hip-hop beat kicks in and completely changes the dynamic of the song. In fact Marshall's voice is a perfect fit for hip-hop. The way he croons over everything is just a perfect fit. The early mid-point of this album completely changes the mood set by the opening two tracks. 'Foreign 2' is full of weird little sounds that meander like sound-waves. It's a very spacey song aided by the echo effect plastered over Marshall's voice. Combine this with the little splutters of sound and the song is quite uneasy and eerie. 'Baby Blue' is a real jazz-inspired track during which Marshall talks about missed chances and the want of somebody's company. "Edging closer, you swim my, girl I've got no chance and nothing to say, girl but stay here for a little while". This is the first time we get a real sense of emotion on the album. There is soul behind that voice. 

'A Lizard State' is where we see King Krule in full flow. It's one of the only songs on the album that feature - what sounds like - a full band behind Marshall. And boy does it sound great. It has a slight whiff of The Last Shadow Puppets about it in the way that it sounds like it's been lifted from a British spy film. This is helped by the addition of a brass section which really add texture and depth to the song. Then as soon as you think that the album is going in a new fuller direction, the mood is restored with the beautifully simple 'Ocean Bed'. It's also one of the most positive sounding songs, at least instrumentally anyway. But once the album draws to a close, King Krule bring out the big guns. 'Out Getting Ribs' is without doubt the track that stands out. From the moment the intricate guitar riff slides down the guitar there is real feeling that this is something special. The high pitched wails of a second guitar really bring it all together and that voice, still on form from the first song just grabs your ears. There is a a slight touch of The Pixies within this song too (as mentioned earlier) not musically, but in terms of structure. There are parts which are quieter than others and then everything is lifted for the ending.

If there is ANY criticism of this album, it's that it could have been the album dreams are made of had it featured a full band. But, that's where this albums beauty lies. In it's simplicity. All you need is the voice, a guitar (or two) and minimal production which allows the true emotion to shine through.

9/10
Best Songs: Easy Easy & Out Getting Ribs

 Out Getting Ribs (Live)

Spotify Playlist 17/12/2015

Spotify Playlist
17/12/15

Every week, The Real Thing's SPOTIFY playlist will update with songs from bands who have featured in the recent posts and songs that you should be listening to.

This week we have tracks from the likes The Psychedelic Furs, Archy Marashall, King Krule, Kurt Vile, JAWS and LoneLady. 

Next Thursday the playlist will update once again! 

To listen to the playlist click HERE . 

Archy Marshall - A New Place 2 Drown

Archy Marshall - A New Place To Drown
Album Review

Since 2010 Archy Marshall has been uploading various tracks of the experimental flavour to his bandcamp under the alias Zoo Kid. From his early grimey blues like U.F.O.W.A.V.E - a collection of minimally produced guitar scrawls to his most polished full length album '6 Feet Beneath The Moon'. Since then he's undergone some serious changes. He adopted the name King Krule, a somewhat more memorable and harsher name than his soft almost cuddly name. His band members during his time as King Krule have no place on this new album too. And to top it all off  Marshall has produced the likes of DJJD Sports and Edgar The Beat Maker but now he returns with a whole new concept. 

'A New Place 2 Drown' is a multimedia effort. It's a ten minute documentary, a 208 page art and poetry book and this album a 37 minute soundtrack. Marshall is joined by his brother Jack. Who helped Marshall with the visual side of King Krule. He designed the artwork for '6 Feet Beneath The Moon' inspired by the likes of Sin City sketcher Frank Miller. Musically, 'A New Place 2 Drown' is very experimental with lots of artificial sounds thrown in to create a sound that is the perfect metaphor for what music could sound like if it was made by robots. The album is extremely vibrant. "The Sea Liner MK1" is very simple. It's two notes played on a synth with a rudimentary electronic drum beat which is almost entirely instrumental apart from the final minute. 

"6 Feet Beneath The Moon"

The poems that feature within the entire collection sometimes feature in the lyrics on the album. In the book there are scattered images with lines from the poems. Lyrically, it's quite dark. The tone of voice throughout the album is very monotone and low as we've heard on his various other releases. It's also very mysterious. It fades in and out amongst the sounds creating a very uneasy feel but it's very interesting. The experimentation doesn't just stop at the sounds heard. Marshall also uses various samples for example on track "Sex With Nobody" he uses some spoken word sampled from what sounds like an old television program. 

When "6 Feet Beneath The Moon" came out, there was a lot said about the fact that he had found his definitive sound. "A New Place 2 Drown" completely throws this in the opposite direction. It sounds so different. It's extremely minimal but at the same time there's a lot going on. It might be a slow burner, but it definitely stands out. 

"A New Place 2 Drown"

Rating - 7.5/10