Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
To be relatable is half the battle in a world that is fixated with false presentation, that is obsessed with the comfortable lie, and who swoons over the view of someone who lacks originality, but has an ego that dominates the proceedings as though if they were to show their true face they would be held accountable for their desperation driven shallowness; hardly relatable, and always irrelevant.
To be an artist today you not only require talent, you must have an agenda, you have to have presence in a virtual world, and it is rare to find a group to whom only the former seems to truly matter, and with no sign of pretension, and only a sense of intense belief that existence matters, The K’s’ brand new album, Pretty On The Internet, exemplifies such abiding honesty and raw fight to progress beyond the drama of the screen and instead be seen as a band of immense openness and sweeping lyrical poetry wrapped up in observation.
The album feels as though it should be sparing space with that special kind of release, the type that Pulp created as Brit-Pop raged, the wonderment of diary entry confession interlaced with affirmation of growth and an assertion of reason rather than be seen appealing to a false narrative; and as tracks such as the opener Before I Hit The Floor, Rat Poison, Me And Your Sister, Running Away Now, Gravestone, and Perfect Haunting, the upbeat progression hides beautifully the melancholy within, it is the perfect balance of commenting on the surge of validation and the possession of nonchalance, of staying cool and aloof in weird personal times.
Following on from I Wonder If The World Knows was a huge ask for the band from Earlestown in Merseyside, but as Jamie Boyle, Ryan Breslin, Dexter Baker, and Nathan Peers not only find the sequel an exciting prospect, but showcase it with warmth, affection, and a searing dynamic, that is infectious and filled with imagery that sparks revolution.
A challenge well met, a study in symphony and poetic structure defines, The K’s have found the way ahead to be of their choosing, and it is a pleasing prospect to behold.
Ian D. Hall