Now Playing: King Krule – ‘Rock Bottom’
King Krule - Rock Bottom
Now Playing – twice every week, a roundtable of our writers will give their views on some of the recently-released new tracks. It’s as simple as that! If you want to tell us what you think of the song, feel free to leave a comment below.
Track: ‘Rock Bottom’ by King Krule
Average grade: 5.5
Tom: I have a feeling Archy Marshall, the man who is King Krule, will be getting very familiar very quickly. He sounds like The Streets, but more damaged and threatening, and less artful. Curiously enough, he also sounds like Penguin Cafe Orchestra. It’s been widely pointed out, but it’s true. Pretty unusual, in other words, and with the potential to become seriously grating. Enjoy it while it’s new. 7/10
Kenny: Musically this is pretty decent, although not quite hitting a peak beside the likes of Toddla T. The lyrics too are not that bad but I just couldn’t get to grips with the vocals, a sort of lazy amalgam of Pete Doherty, Preston & (non-rapping) Plan B. Streets comparisons don’t hold water for me here. 3/10
Richard: I suppose the influence of Jack Penate and Jamie T has finally begun to surface. ‘Rock Bottom’ is a raw and I suppose you might also say ‘real’ sounding song. It has some character and rogueish charm about it. Whilst certainly not pulling up any trees with this one, King Krule has written a song that isn’t pretty, but certainly isn’t hideous either. 6/10
Craig: I like the urgent beat that kicks in and the piss-drunk vocals. It’s reminiscent of when Sid Vicious sang ‘My Way’, but, you know, better. This song has a definite energy to it that rises and falls rather elegantly, in fact. 6/10
Greg: Archy Marshall is barely 18 but he sounds like he’s been around for decades – it’s that voice that does it. I’m not sure I’ve entirely warmed to it yet though I think, perhaps, that’s not the point. The musicianship here is good – the song suddenly bursts to life after a long intro with pummelling drums, a nice left turn that suggests King Krule isn’t going to be happy sticking to the usual singer-songwriter tropes. 7/10
Stef: I think this is when people say, This is not my thing. It isn’t. I acknowledge the raw emotion and I do think there’s some musicality in especially the faster paced segments (which I believe some people have come to call “funk”, but for me that’s not it at all), but I don’t think it is particularly beautiful to listen to. The vocals are so “raw” that they tread on the unappealing-to-listen-to side for me, and if I were in the editing room I would’ve cut the heck out of that acoustic beginning. 4/10
