Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Artist: King Foo
Label: Self-released
Release: 2017
Rating: 4/5
King Foo are an incredibly likable art pop rock quartet, or let’s just say a band devoted to musical fusion. It’s made up of four exceptionally talented musicians: miracle-working virtuoso bassist Matej Sušnik, guitar maestro Peter Hudnik, the outstanding Rok Golob, otherwise a well-known multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger and producer, who plays drums in King Foo, and singer Aleksandra Josić. The latter replaced Urška Majdič in 2015. And yes, King Foo sound considerably different with Josić, since she’s a singer cut from a completely different cloth than Urška Majdič.
In the past two years the band has hit the gas and poured all its commitment into creating a bundle of solid original compositions. In 2016 they took part in Slovenska popevka with the song Začaraj me and finished third in the final, with Josić and Golob also picking up separate awards for best vocal interpretation and best arrangement. Riding that success, the band quickly lined up a few more singles, Lebdenje, Kristal and Dance without moving, while Wild Ride even represented them at this year’s EMI. Anyone who’s ever seen King Foo live knows this crew can pull off a really wide, genre-spanning range of music. From Rage Against the Machine to Duffy, Pink, Michael Jackson and Stevie Wonder. The guitar is clearly and generously present throughout the production, so the rock premise in the band’s sound comes through loud and clear.
With the album »Galaxie« it’s worth saying right away that, however pleasantly it speaks to the listener, it’s a tough nut to crack when it comes to reviewing it. It’s so layered that the listener, peeling back all the veils the band weaves into its musical landscape, or rather the musical conglomerate itself, doesn’t easily hit bottom. So many nuances and details are packed in. So much wit and sparkle in the creating, so many fun switches between rhythmic keys you don’t see coming, even a few subtly slipped-in elements of jazz, even though we’re talking about a hyper-musical album! The answer to all the high-flying virtuoso rhetoric of the album, as well as its spirit of exploration, comes above all from the track Div-ja, which, as a composition, is almost progressive. In terms of complexity, it’s certainly one of the most interesting compositions on the whole album!
Every song on this album has its own crafted, distinct expressive character, its own musical personality. Art and pop and rock. That’s the easiest label, which, to be honest, hints that the band is successfully building on a homegrown musical artistry, but still doesn’t give away the real essence. The band draws from a treasury of charming hit melodies and evergreens from the turn of the seventies into the eighties. So a strong grounding in funk and disco rhythms is by no means left out (Utrip noči, Dance Without Moving). Myself in the Music could go down well with fans of the likes of Chicago or Earth Wind And Fire, while X-Blues is the band’s adventitious flirtation with the blues, with King Foo losing not a speck of their own distinctive idiom. On top of all that, they add a tasteful dose of lucidity and cheekiness to the songs’ character, and it all culminates in the album’s goofily fun peak, wrapped up by the song KokaKokice. It’s the album’s punk »runaway«, with lead vocals by Peter Hudnik.
The added keyboard arrangements also make Rok Golob one of the band’s integral figures, since within the compositions themselves they further underline the artistic breadth of a well-read musician, almost flawlessly honed and polished in his knowledge of genres. The witty weaving-in of keyboards and the crafty coloring of the lead motifs evoke the sentiment of the radio-friendly eighties, and will perk up the ears of Toto fans too. That said, the band is better at songs with Slovenian lyrics, and it might be wise to consider having Josić sing a track or two in Serbo-Croatian, if not Slovenian, rather than stubbornly sticking to English at all costs.
»Galaxie« is an excellent studio debut from a visionary quartet building on the foundations of a homegrown musical culture. With it, King Foo present themselves as a band built on a concise original premise of art pop and rock.
Lineup
Aleskandra Josić – vocals
Peter Hudnik – guitar, vocals on track no. 13
Matej Sušnik – bass, backing vocals on track no. 11
Rok Golob – drums, percussion, keyboards, guitar, programming
GUEST MUSICIANS:
Soul Activation – backing vocals on track no. 9
Brad Winkow – electric piano on track no. 9
Production
Rok Golob
Tracklist
1. Galaksije bežijo
2. Začaraj me
3. Dance Without Moving
4. Wild Ride
5. Lebdenje
6. 1000 besed
7. Utrip noči
8. X blues
9. Myself in the Music
10. Kristal
11. Let the Night Fall
12. Div-ja
13. KokaKokice
