The sophomore album from Sophia Kennedy features shadowy and heavy electronics that accompany the star of the show: her vocals and vocal range. Her mind seems to be restless and running at 100 miles per hour but that doesn't seem to mess with her confidence or swagger whatsoever.
Baltimore singer and songwriter Sophia Kennedy first caught my attention when she was featured as a guest vocalist on a few tracks from DJ Koze's Knock Knock record back in 2018. Not only her distinct voice and vocal chops impressed me, but her moody delivery and sharp awareness in singing. She definitely stands out with her voice and delivery; she has a quirkiness and confidence in her voice that's quite loud, prominent, and often times powerful. Her styles typically venture from indie pop, R&B, and electronica, while also throwing back to classic R&B and soul with her actual singing. Her 2017 self-titled debut album was released on Koze's label Pampa Records and featured very colorful and vibrant production over some layered powerful vocals. Her sophomore album, Monsters, is released on City Slang and is a detour stylistically and thematically.
Monsters is noticeably different in tone and sound. Rather than the colorfully chirpy and tribal instrumentals from the Sophia Kennedy album, Monsters has bass-heavy electronics that reach to an industrial level at times. It's sinister and troubled. Also seeing the disturbing demonic mouth of the piano standing right next to Kennedy is quite fitting, which instantly reminds me of the similarly demonic piano from Super Mario 64 (you know the one). I became interested in checking Monsters out due to the solid singles following up to its release. "Cat on My Tongue" is the lead single and the album's best track. It has a massively groovy instrumental that perfectly matches Kennedy's swaying and richly moving vocals. Her mind seems to be restless and running at 100 miles per hour. The opening line to the track says it all: "There's so much to say, but whenever I could, I can't like a long scream underwater." "I Can See You" is a simple electro pop driven tune that features some great quirky sampling and the most memorable hooks on the record. Her higher register on the song's chorus really lifts you off your seat. I also appreciate the bossa-nova influenced instrumental on "Seventeen," which brings the album's much needed cool down. The light and airy strings gliding across these electronics are a nice touch.
The majority of this album features shadowy and heavy electronics that accompany the star of the show, being Sophia Kennedy's vocals and her range. These electronic instrumentals (especially on some of the deeper cuts) can run through the track list too plainly, leaving a lack of variety in some of the tracks. Despite this, Kennedy truly lifts these instrumentals and carry them with her fantastic vocals. For example, "Animals Will Come" is a moody ballad whose instrumental has simple vintage keys, basic synths, and percussion but her vocal performance really saves it from becoming uninteresting. Some of the deep cuts though did surprise me. The vocal swagger on "Loop" is great and the instrumental shifts into these weird saxophone samples and excellent groove in the second half. The rapid fire percussion on "I'm Looking Up" is completely unexpected and I'm here for it. The choir and Kennedy's vocal harmonies on "Do They Know" is absolutely beautiful and hair raising. The album's closer, "Dragged Myself Into the Sun," takes the listener into experimental passages where the glitchy electronics, piano, and altered harmonies glide into industrial noise: a glorious finish.
Even as a sophomore record, Monsters certainly shows what Sophia Kennedy is able to do and more. Despite some of the instrumentals being generally forgettable electronic pop, Kennedy definitely makes up for it with her vocals, range, confidence, and swagger in her performances. When listening to the album's closer and how amazing the finish was, I do wish that the rest of the album (especially the rest of the deep cuts) were as rewarding of a payoff. Despite this, I ended up enjoying Monsters as an album for the most part. Were some of these moments kind of forgettable? Yes, but overall the standout singles are great and Sophia Kennedy's powerhouse of a voice is more than enough to check this record (and her future projects) out.
My Rating: 6 / 10
Favorite Songs: "Cat on My Tongue," "I Can See You," "Seventeen," "Loop," "Dragged Myself Into the Sun"
Comments