Kimbra
Vows

Question number 1: "Have you ever heard of Kimbra?" "Um... yes, the name sounds familiar, isn't she the one in the video with Gotye where they're naked and painting themselves?" Correct. So far, that's always the answer. Question number 2: "Have you ever listened to anything from her first album that just came out?" No. No, and again no. Despite the immense success of "Somebody That I Used to Know" (half a billion views on YouTube!), very few in Italy have bothered to learn more about that girl with the crystalline voice, the co-star of Gotye's love complaints. So I decided to try to right this wrong and talk about "Vows", the debut album of the New Zealand singer.

Despite various influences from multiple genres (first and foremost jazz), the album is within the coordinates of Pop. This involves some understandable "limitations" (although, I admit, this is highly subjective). First of all, the lyrics never stray from the romantic theme, although often dealt with brilliant irony and sensual cynicism; the sound is extremely polished, and finally, you won't find great experimentation. However, this does not mean that "Vows" isn't an original and extremely fresh album. Thanks to her enormous personality, which you can truly feel throughout the album, Kimbra delivers music of the highest quality, which is rarely heard in this field.

What immediately stands out upon first listening is the great variety of tracks and the total absence of fillers. You go from the pristine Pop-jazz of "Cameo Lover" to the frantic electronics of "Come Into My Head", to name two possible extremes, in a frequent modern revisitation of vintage that adds charm to it all. The music is extremely well-crafted and, while often adhering to the structure of a Pop song, it impresses with the variety of sounds, arrangements, harmonic solutions, instruments, and styles used. It is difficult to determine which tracks are actually better than others, as each one is different from the next and always very well thought out. It is amidst these continuous changes that Kimbra's voice is showcased in all its beauty as the true strength of the album. What most impresses is the range of nuances she knows how to achieve: Kimbra moves from whispers to shouts, constantly altering her timbre with an unmistakable style. She also writes highly elaborate choruses, performs vocal solos, skillfully uses loops... in short (as a true singer), she makes her voice the leading instrument throughout the album, never missing a beat.

"Vows" is certainly not an epic album; it probably won't become a classic and hasn't created any genre, yet within the international Pop realm, it is so rare to find an album of this level that it undoubtedly deserves attention. I also recommend watching the numerous videos on YouTube showcasing the singer's creativity in the numerous (and truly complex) rearrangements she performs of her pieces.