A.R. Kane – New Clear Child

“Arguably the most criminally under-recognized band of their era,” A.R. Kane aka duo Alex Ayuli and Rudi Tambala were influential in the development of a number of musical movements in England including “sampladelic” dance music, dreampop, shoegaze, and trip-hop. Following an early-90’s hiatus, A.R. Kane released their last and least popular, but also our personal favorite, album New Clear Child. Pulling out the distorted guitars and incorporating elements of jazz and downtempo chillout music, the album is a perfect fusion of trip-hop, jazz, and pop music with some of the most tender songwriting in A.R. Kane’s discography. B1 “Honey Be (For Stella)” leads with an addictive fretless bass motif before settling into a laid back groove and Alex Ayuli crooning, “I will follow you, and you will follow me.” B2 “Cool As Moons” hits on a similar tempo, but with a more nostalgic tone featuring a mysterious digital harp melody, loose trumpet in the distance, and lines like, “Sat upon a stair wishing you were here… I can almost remember the way things used be.”

Recommended – Full Listen