Artist: kids
Album: Rich Coast
Release Date: 01/27/2015
Reviewer: Sara
Tracklisting:
- Man On The Moon
- Vistas
- Love’s Song
- Second Star On The Right
- Paved Paradise
- The Standoff
- Lone
- Rides
- Falsetto
- Sera
- Broken Homes
- Sunshine
For their debut full-length album, Ft. Lauderdale band Kids, brought their best effort to the table and it’s nothing short of beautiful. It’s a musical journey that reads like the pages of a good book, you can’t put it down. Chapter after chapter, song after song, Rich Coast pulls you in and keeps you guessing what sound or line you’ll hear next. Each listen-thru peeling back another layer, finding new depth.
Kids’ Josiah Sampson says, “When we discussed writing our full-length record, we sought out ways to translate feeling into the music. We wanted to convey emotion rather than just a sound or a story, we wanted to put the listener in the scenery where we wrote it. We went on a three-week adventure, across the pines of Chattanooga, Tennessee to the mountains of Northern Georgia. In search for adolescence, in search for a feeling we could construe…”
Feelings, indeed. Although in this current technological era the hashtag for this album would probably be a less eloquent, but completely valid, #allthefeels. Themes of love, self-awareness, and an underlying current of faith through it all come to life with steady drums, interesting melodies, a handful of gang vocals and the occasional whistle or horn. Indie/Folk/Alternative/Rock is about right for an album that is hard to classify in just one genre but passionate vocals and an overall musicality keep it tight and intriguing instead of disjointed.
While the music is almost hard to describe (“other-worldly” and “airy yet grounded” are descriptors I can’t shake but haven’t found a good way to incorporate yet) the lyrics are pretty straight forward and honest. A few of the favorites from Rich Coast include, “You might say home is where the heart lives, but I’d say I’m homeless because I know how hard this heart is.” “All we are are is human, beating, bleeding, feeling. All we are is human, beating, bleeding, feeling.” and “Hey there, put your sword away, it’s time to be a man turn and face the day. Here’s to the man you’ve become, here’s to the boy you once was.” There is a certain vulnerability that any listener can find a piece of themselves in.
Overall: If Rich Coast is setting the stage for all releases in 2015 we have a fantastic year of music ahead of us. If you’re a fan of Young the Giant, Fever Fever, and Author this release should be the next addition to your collection. The men of Kids set out to create an album of emotions and it will be finding it’s way into your heart on first spin.