Album Review: Kae Tempest - "The Line Is A Curve"

 

Kae Tempest's first album since their name change and coming out as gender neutral is maybe not something you'd expect to see in this webzine but the truth is that similar to the likes of Scroobius Pip, Riz Ahmed or Run The Jewels, quite simply I’m a fan of their music. I'll be the first to admit that I'm not what you'd call a rap or hip-hop aficionado at all but I can appreciate this sort of music when it's done well and Tempest is definitely one of those who can deliver on this front as they’ve demonstrated ever since the days of albums like Everybody Down.

Although The Line Is A Curve is a very introspective album, Tempest deserves credit for not going for what would arguably have been the easy route and write about their experiences over the last few years. There's a few tracks like These Are The Days or Water In The Rain which could be deciphered as coded references to their struggle but mostly, this is an album about finding solace in tough times - Salt Coast's references to the effect the lockdown had on a lot of us' mental health writes the manifesto in fine style. Similarly, Smoking's tale of childhood scars over minimalist backing is a genuinely unsettling listen but in a good way.

It's backed up by the lush orchestration on a lot of the tracks which gives them a gentler sound than the more ferocious stuff you might be used to Kae doing but it's a change of pace which works well. The gentle I Saw The Light featuring Grian from Fontaines DC which takes the sparseness right down to not even having any beats on it is another highlight with the gentle electronics washing over you. The gentle ode to those who are breaking their backs trying to overachieve in society, No Prizes, is another highlight as is the gentle guitar-led closer Grace, a genuinely beautiful track.

As I said at the beginning of this review, I get that this isn't the sort of music we generally don't cover a lot of here on Nite Songs but it fully deserves a review here because it's a damn good album whether you're into rap or not and proves that Tempest deserves their place as one of the most acclaimed artists of their genre. Whatever your music taste, The Line Is A Curve is well worth a listen. 

NITE SONGS RATING: 🌔🌔🌔🌔🌔🌔🌔🌔🌑🌑 (8/10)

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