Album Review: Man Alive! By King Krule

Man Alive! is a reworking of King Krule’s familiar woozy and aggressive sound, with an added touch of tenderness.

A mastering of sonic textures, Archy Marshall’s latest album released on the 21st of February and meanders between a romanticised feeling of hopelessness and glimmers of genuine serenity. Drawing from his earlier work, deep drones and violent vocals remain central to the act of King Krule and seep into the styles of Man Alive!. The highlights in the album also still remain the same – rich twangy guitar tones and vocals that beg for a moment of ease. 

A homage to his earlier work, ‘Cellular’ picks up where The OOZ left off and brings a beautiful palette of sonic variety that draws us in. As the first feature of saxophonist Ignacio Salvadores, the instrumentation of this track adds a slicing sense of ornamentation and improvisation to the repeated phrases, while grounding us at the beginning of the narrative of Man Alive!.

The album has clear highlights of musicality in both its lyricism and instrumentation, though at times seems to sink too deep into its own murkiness; indecipherable and incoherent. In tracks such as ‘Supermache’ and ‘Stoned Again’, Marshall’s course wails and heavy bass drown the moments of clarity that flicker in and out of focus throughout.  

Thankfully, the notes of tenderness are more clear in the second half, though suspends the wider album in a limbo between aggression and a grounded acceptance of reality. Tracks like ‘The Dream’, ‘(Don’t Let the Dragon) Draag On’ and ‘Theme of the Cross’ provide much needed interludes splicing the album in half and separating the signature violent sounds from the rich instrumental tracks. 

Like most things, the beauty of an album is in its contrast and ability to balance violence with equal moments of sweetness and observation. While the first half feels like trying to catch smoke in the dark – a constant feeling of spiralling misery, this dissolves away. Introducing beautiful and lush moments of deep piano and ambient tones of woodwind; this is what makes this album memorable. ‘Underclass’ seamlessly carries musical fragments into ‘Energy Fleets’ and through to the metallic and twinkling finish of ‘Please Complete Thee’.

As despairing and bitter as the album seems, each track is swimming in a seductive sadness and a sincere kind of vulnerability that was absent in The OOZ. Marshall’s lyrics wander between hopefulness and his age-old loneliness and despair – and he never does quite make up his mind. While presenting a new kind of emotional experimentation, Man Alive!’s sound doesn’t land too far from his other work – though I, at least, welcome this album with open arms.