Scottish singer-songwriter, KT Tunstall’s fifth album is a pop-leaning update on her driving acoustic rock style.
Tunstall ditches her trusty loop pedal for the big stompy percussion brought by producer Tony Hoffer (Beck, Arkells).
KIN opens with a light blast of whimsical U.K. pop on Hard Girls and from there on it’s a grab bag of sounds driven by Tunstall’s throaty vocal and strummy acoustic guitar.
These are at the heart of all her songs, and the record is a solid statement of style. The folk-rock still holds sway (Turned a Light On, Maybe It’s a Good Thing) and is shaded in pop friendly melodies.
This mood is prevalent on KIN and Tunstall tweaks it with electronics and arrangements, both applied tastefully. Hoffer’s beat-heavy production style lines up naturally with Tunstall’s big voiced troubadour vibe. It Took Me So Long to Get Here, But Here I Am and On My Star are representative of that approach and the husky voiced singer is at her melodic best on these songs.
The edgy rocker Evil Eye turns back to the earthy spirit of Tunstall’s early-days hit Black Horse and a Cherry Tree and is a standout track on this recording. Her sound on KIN is a shinier, happier progression from her early years but still retains the drama that informed those songs.
– Dean Gordon-Smith is a Vernon-based musician who reviews the latest music releases in Street Sounds every Friday.
