Unsigned songwriter and producer K H U S H I has recently started gaining significant attention on the blogosphere, and it’s totally well-deserved: his simple yet catchy melodies bring together the best of K H U S H I‘s favourite artists - Bon Iver, The National and Alt-J - shaping some passionate ballads.
K H U S H I‘s project was officially born in September 2012 in East London (in Hackney to be precise), and since then he has unveiled four songs via SoundCloud. His music is not available for buying yet, but you can stream all the four tracks below. And don’t worry: if you’re eager to snap up something more official, K H U S H I is planning to release a single in early spring, while the album is due for later this year. Also, he performed his first gig a few weeks ago and a couple of other small concerts in the last few days, so if you live in the London area, you should watch for more live acts. But if you don’t have the chance to see K H U S H I live, here‘s something for you to watch: it’s him on a roof performing an acoustic version of “You Say”.
His music is somewhere between pop and folk and is highly influenced by his favourite artists: the melancholic touch of The Virginia EP by The National, Justin Vernon‘s heartbreaking folk sound, Alt-J‘s sense of rhythm are all there. The flow from one song to another is gentle and smooth, they would combine perfectly on an album or EP, with the acoustic guitar being the common thread to all of them.
The four song all have equally great rhythmic and minimalistic harmonies, but my personal favourite is “Phantoms”, which starts fairly calmly, only to grow more energetic second after second, revealing some Broken Bells vibes. “Magpie” features guitars, vibrant drums and violins that surround K H U S H I‘s voice and occasional falsettos in perfect Bon Iver’s style. “When You Start” moves away from the pattern of the other songs, at least in the beginning when the blissful vocal harmonies make it the perfect intro to a chillwave tune, but the crescendo drumming ultimately brings “When You Start” back to the same path of the other four tracks.
K H U S H I‘s music is certainly engaging and despite the stated clear influences, it’s never unoriginal. His songs have the power to lull you and just make you feel safe because of the recognizable harmonies, but in each of them there’s always some unexpected ingredient that adds the spice to the flow.
Connect with K H U S H I: Facebook | Twitter | Last.fm | Soundcloud
