Kaki King preview

Kaki King
Schubas, Chicago
Saturday, October 14, 2006

Guitar virtuoso Kaki King throws not one, but two curveballs on her new record.

For those who know King as an acoustic guitar virtuoso, allow . . . Until We Felt Red (Velour) to introduce you to Kaki King the guitarist/singer. That’s the first curveball. King’s first two records, Everybody Loves You and Lets To Make Us Longer, were completely instrumental — save a hum here and there — showcases for King’s gorgeous guitar playing. Wisely, King didn’t make her newfound voice the emphasis of the material, though. Her nimble, elegant playing is rightfully still the focus, and in fact, her competent — but slightly flimsy — singing is generally only sparingly used to add color to the compositions.

But her voice isn’t the only new instrument. Many of Red‘s songs sound like evolutions of the material on Legs, where King first started beefing up production. In that case, “beefing” up simply meant pureeing some drums, some bass, the occasional violin, with a smattering of electric guitar. On Red King adds even more sound (the second curveball, though more of a slider, really) to the mix — lap steel, pedal steel, harp — and trusts herself even more with the electric guitar, which, surprise surprise, she excels at. Whether it’s the wispiness of “Yellocake,” the jazzy ambience of “I Never Said I Love You,” or the post rock experimentation of the title track, King is willing to try, and more often than not, she succeeds.

Christine Baze opens.

— Trevor Fisher

Click here to listen to streaming samples of Kaki King.

Category: Stage Buzz, Weekly