How To Dress Well's post-Kantian R&B

Originally published at ABC Arts Online, January 2015

Tom Krell, the man behind the How To Dress Well moniker, wears a plain white t-shirt to perform in at all his shows. The ensemble is invariably completed by dark tracksuit bottoms. Thin, fairly handsome and hardly flamboyant, Krell's personal style seems to define the spurious 'normcore' fashion categorisation of recent times.

Despite this casualness, each How To Dress Well concert is an event, an absorbing, atmospheric experience that may often be simply choreographed, yet offers something gently mesmerising. Krell carefully marries mood with his music, which can be described as a neo-soul-influenced, rhythmic and melodic take on sublime existential despair, that on first few listens may seem to dwell firmly in the realm of pop, yet with immersion becomes something more expansive and eclectic. On stage, there are shadows, projections, candles and two microphones. Krell alternates between them, one being 'clean', the other drenched in the reverb that frequently appears on his three magnificent albums, the latest of which is 2014's "What Is This Heart?"

These projections play a major role in making Krell's performances so interesting, and recently this aspect has been developed by a unique collaboration between Krell and multimedia artist Melissa Matos. Among the innovations is the fact that the projections, which are generally abstract, are 'controlled' by Krell's movements on stage. Matos's projections, manipulated by the artist live, react to and anticipate the singer's actions. Matos told Spin, for whose Connect Sessions the partnership initially served, "We're taking these textures and making them really interactive, a lot of his silhouette following him around as he moves. So Tom is really able to control what happens - depending on his different actions, he will trigger reactions on the screen."

Krell added, "If I'm doing a gesture, she tries to anticipate it with something visual… The visuals react to my gestures. So she's playing off the energy of the live set with the visuals and the actual visual aspect is playing off of my energy and gestures."

It remains to be seen whether Krell's Australian shows will incorporate such complexities, yet audiences can be sure of a performance that is genuinely unique in the contemporary world of pop; Krell rounds things out with some impish banter between songs that acts as a balance to their somewhat bleak nature.

Thirty-year-old Krell, who grew up in Denver and now lives in Chicago, released his first album, the well-received Love Remains, in 2010. But it was his 2011 release Total Loss that saw him define his artistic identity and explore what is a fairly unusual sound, yet one that paradoxically is heavily informed by mainstream nineties R&B. (He includes songs by Whitney Houston in his live sets, and previously 'I Wish' by R. Kelly, until allegations of Kelly's sex crimes resurfaced, rendering Krell's interpretation inappropriate). Total Loss also took its toll on its maker, with much of it inspired by the deaths of a close friend and a family member.

Then in 2014 he produced arguably his most satisfying record yet in "What Is This Heart?", another personal collection of songs that deals with his family, grief and existential disorientation. His vocals, higher in the mix than previously and frequently falsetto, emerge as the most poignant mode of expression, with the album largely transcending the R&B template with which he is associated.

Another aspect of his life that tends to follow this media-shy artist around is his doctoral study in philosophy. Krell has been reluctant to draw links between his academic research, which is apparently of the "post-Kantian" variety, and his music. Like other successful academics in pop, such as Dan Snaith of Caribou, the two passions do not inform each other, although he admits some overlapping is inevitable. He told The Quietus, "The ways in which they overlap would take a long time for me to explain, because it's not intuitive to say there's a common thread between this experimental R&B stuff and developments in 19th century logic, but I'm attracted to all the things I do for common reasons, which I can see personally."

Up until the slightly more positive "What Is This Heart?", the personal philosophy and worldview expressed in Krell's music was one of heartrending despair. Even on his latest, widely regarded as his most life-affirming, there are lines such as "There’s no design, no god, just the future in my mother’s broken heart" on '2 Years On (Shame Dream)', while on Total Loss personal heartbreak is married with a wider social nihilism. This is exacerbated when he says things in interviews like, "It's really hard to find an image of the world worth affirming. If you go on the news or if you do research in almost any field, you realize the world is a terrible place. I always think of this Wallace Stevens quote where he says, 'The world is ugly and the people are sad.' And I think that's at least 98 percent right."

Krell's mission as a musician, however, appears to be to complicate and blur this sadness – a Schopenhauer-by-way-of-Boyz II Men, he is not. Therefore, his dark musings are set against imaginative and colourful production that lurches between Justin Timberlake, Kanye West and even contemporary classical minimalism, and he is so sprightly and good-natured on stage. There is an energy, and a penetrating originality to How To Dress Well, suggesting that joy can be found in music, at least. This extends to his songwriting too – Krell's lyrics are generally arrived at through improvising or freestyling, something he also experiments with when performing, be it musically or with his visuals. The two percent of happiness he refers to can perhaps be found through creativity.

The other mitigating factor regarding the misery found in Krell's songs is the fact he refutes any notion of his music being directly autobiographical. He told Flavorwire, "I hope people don’t think that my music is autobiographical in the sense of, for example, the guy at a coffee shop with an acoustic guitar strumming and telling his life story. I’ve never pretended to wear that mask, and I think that as much as my music is confessional, it’s kind of obliquely confessional. It’s not really about getting to know me."

Such ambiguity makes for a deeply mysterious and alluring proposition, and for some the most fascinating artist on the music bill at this year's Sydney Festival. His show will be, both literally and metaphorically, shreds of light piercing a pervasive darkness.

How To Dress Well performed as part of Sydney Festival 2015.

The Age of Fatigue: 2012's best albums

1. Sweet Lights - Sweet Lights

Highline Records

While consistently releasing fine records as The Capitol Years up until now, Shai Halperin’s career reached its zenith with this, his new recording moniker. His taut yet engaging songwriting is complemented by the fact Sweet Lights is, lyrically, a labyrinthine beast that is at one moment caustic, at another vulnerable and constantly passionate. A complex masterpiece of sophisticated pop that draws on George Harrison, Surf’s Up-era Beach Boys and most of all, ELO and 10cc, Halperin’s latest is a record that is both startling on first listen and constantly revealing itself as a deeper understanding of it is sought..

2. The House That Jack Built - Jesca Hoop

Last Laugh Records

Hoop’s third album was not quite as strong as 2009’s Hunting My Dress, yet it still was an irresistible, moving example of the Californian’s originality as a songwriter and her poetic, often bizarre lyrical subject matter that covers all of heated sexuality, childhood whims and death. The beauty of Hoop’s melodies is in the foreground throughout, but it is when she draws on rhythm, on ‘Peacemaker’ that the album reaches something a little more supernatural, and disturbing. 

3. Port Of Morrow - The Shins

Aural Apothecary

Having been around for so long now, in one incarnation or other, and beloved by people who don’t really know anything about music, you would be forgiven for expecting The Shins to be heading into irrelevance. But Port Of Morrow ended up being uncompromisingly brilliant, Mercer’s wordy songs both aggressive and fragile and framed by arrangements and instruments much more inventive than on previous albums. Opener ‘The Rifle Spiral’ cemented itself as one of Mercer’s finest songs, while ‘Bait and Switch’ tapped into the melancholy kind of exuberance that made him an outstanding writer in the first place.

4. Kadavar - Kadavar

Tee Pee

The Berlin trio blasted their way across Europe in 2012 without really penetrating in the UK or US. But this is a record anyone who appreciates anything about heavy rock should savour. The thumping of ostensibly simple riffs is joined by some mesmerising, but never quite ostentatious, solos. The mournfulness of Blue Cheer is here, as is the flesh of Black Sabbath, along with the contemporary rock structures as favoured by a band like Black Mountain. A jolting yet hazy exercise in brutality. 

5. Lonerism - Tame Impala
Modular

Tame Impala’s sprawling, prog-infused second album contained less immediacy in terms of hooks than their debut, instead this was a fascinatingly dense collection of songs from the frazzled mind of Kevin Parker. As may always be the case with this band, there are peaks and troughs, but there are also several moments of kaleidoscopic magic that mark Lonerism as a landmark Australian release. These include the stunning changes of pace in ‘Apocalypse Dreams’ as well as the fade-in intro of 'Keep On Lying'.

6. Plumb - Field Music
Memphis Industries


Two things were key to the intrigue on the Brewis brothers' latest. Firstly, there was its length, at 35 minutes substantially shorter than 2010’s Measure. The songs are direct, unequivocal things that do not linger on brilliant instrumental passages as on Measure, and the shift in approach is a telling one when you consider the album’s second point of import: its ideology. Plumb is full of shaded references to austerity and frugality. Field Music’s excellence moves into new realms. 

7. Mad Love - Cheval Sombre
Sonic Cathedral

Christopher Porpora, poet and musician from New York, is the man responsible for this blissful collection that demands constant listening. Its overall sound is one of morphine, or lying afloat on the ocean, thanks to its drenching in reverb and echo. The songwriting is simple but affecting, such as on ‘I Fell In Love’ or opener 'Someplace Else'. The satisfying, druggy drone of ‘Couldn’t Do’ provides variety and completes a record that is, as Porpora himself describes it, a “long, delirious swoon”. 

8. The Russian Wilds - Howlin' Rain
Agitated

One of the reasons Ethan Miller took so long (four years) to follow up Magnificent Fiend was that, under the directorship of producer Rick Rubin, he wanted to hone the new songs live, fully realising them before entering the studio, making recording as smooth as possible. Of course, with this approach the album dies by the strength of its songs, which are mostly exceptional. Miller’s voice has arrived at a staggering degree of soul and emotion, while The Russian Wilds exhibits a Rundgren-esque mixture of innovative rock and touching songwriting.

9. Sic Alps - Sic Alps
Drag City

Sic Alps moved on from their fine 2011 album Napa Asylum by generally eschewing Nuggets-style lo-fi in favour of some silkier (for them) songwriting, where melody is to the fore. There will always be a certain scratchy quality to a Sic Alps record, yet Mike Donovan covers both love and loss on Sic Alps’ terrific latest with earnestness and soul, even if a dash of irony and at times something a little disturbing still arises from time to time.

10. White Manna - White Manna
Holy Mountain

White Manna’s debut is hardly a beacon of innovation or a heralding of new frontiers in rock, but the Californian band are still a hugely powerful proposition. Arguably the best all-out psych album of 2012, this is hard, visceral and drawing on vintage punk in the same way Wooden Shjips or the Black Angels do. ‘Don’t Gun Us Down’ proves them capable of something neater and more precise, but it is the sprawling relentlessness of tracks like ‘Acid Head’ that characterise the record.

11. Sugaring Season - Beth Orton
ANTI-

For all the fact that motherhood and loss (the death of Bert Jansch and to a lesser degree, John Martyn) inspired Orton’s first album in six years, Sugaring Season is driven by the same spellbinding songwriting gifts that elevated her above the Britpop crowd in the 90s. The style remains in the mould of Jansch, Richard Thompson and others in the folk-rock canon, with opener ‘Magpie’ beginning a series of majestic tracks that culminates in the quite breathtaking ‘Poison Tree’. Her soft but resilient compositions make Sugaring Season one of her best.

12. The Clearing - Bowerbirds
Dead Oceans

It was a case of Bowerbirds’ promise being finally realised on their third album, an intelligent and heartfelt effort that showed much more depth than their first two LPs. The songs are more subtle and demanding, although Phil Moore’s sonorous voice remains the hub around which the Bowerbirds’ tender sound revolves. There is also a sense of humour on The Clearing, moving songs away from just the pastoral - admittedly something they do very well. It all sounds so effortless and natural, the sound of a band becoming ever more confident and comfortable. 

13. Total Loss - How To Dress Well 
Weird World

The restraint shown by Berlin-based American Tom Krell on his debut was quite staggering, particularly when you consider the realms he was playing with: 90s R&B along with ambient and soul. The luscious sound is the first thing that hits you, followed immediately by the expert songwriting. These tracks are shimmering, coy things that hint at sensuality as well as all the great melodramatic emotions that pop can evoke. At first, the album seemed a bit long, but in fact, it is all completely necessary. 

14. World Music - Goat
Rocket Recordings

The fuss over World Music was entirely justified, as this is an extraordinary and irreverent record that explores a surreal, fragmented domain, channeling feverish jungle music, tropicalia and untamed psychedelia into one weird, infectious soup. The voodoo flavours can even be a little overwhelming and intimidating at times, but you cannot fault Goat’s rather psychotic intent, with every track containing something extraordinary, if unnerving..

15. Here - Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros
Rough Trade

The view that Alex Ebert’s band are just a load of hippy nonsense is understandable. But there were things about their second album that surely elevated them above such criticisms. There is variety and thought on Here, with songs such as ‘Man On Fire’ (a Johnny Cash-fuelled stomp) and ‘Mayla’ (a primitive, and not entirely successful spiritual thing) exhibiting two ends of Ebert’s spectrum. The best moment is actually from Jade Castrinos, on the impressive ‘Fiya Wata’. It's just a shame they had to spend half the year supporting Mumford & Sons. 

16. Fragrant World - Yeasayer
Mute

Not as good or as well-rounded as Odd Blood, nor as breathtakingly frenetic as All Hour Cymbals, Fragrant World had its limitations. But Yeasayer did, still, come up with a number of stunning songs that sit well against anything from those two fabulous records. ‘Longevity’, ‘Blue Paper’ and the wonderful ‘Folk Hero Shtick’ were the standouts, while there weren’t really any truly weak songs. It’s just their own high standards that they failed to meet when considering Fragrant World as a single piece. 

17. The Sparrow - Lawrence Arabia
Bella Union

There were things that categorically didn’t work about Lawrence Arabia’s third album, such as the fact James Milne is still layering on the eccentric, absurdist persona a little too thickly. But the strength of the songs here carries a generally intriguing record that is a fine follow-up to Chant Darling. ‘Early Kneecappings’ and especially ‘Legends’ rival any song Milne has written, even going back to his Reduction Agents days, although a change of tack will be in order fairly soon. 

18. The Family Tree: The Roots - Radical Face
Nettwerk

Released in the US in October 2011 but in the UK and Australia in January, Ben Cooper’s second LP was a highly accomplished alt-folk concept album, record in a shed. Cooper’s imagination runs far and wide, here addressing the dynastic tale of a family throughout the generations. His detached and fragmented delivery of this makes it constantly interesting, while the songs themselves, while needing a little attention to properly appreciate, are a vast improvement on Bon Iver, who Cooper is regularly compared with. 

19. Beard, Wives, Denim - Pond
Modular


It was silly, but it was fantastic. The camp theatricality of the strange little man that is Nick Allbrook may have shocked those in the UK and US who only know him as the relatively staid bass player in Tame Impala, yet there was a lot of substance behind the extravagant façade. There is movement and colour to their caffeinated psychedelia that no other current band really exhibits, while the collective smile that permeates Pond’s music is hugely attractive. It helps they are stunning live, too. 

20. Out Of The Game - Rufus Wainwright

Polydor

His weakest album by far, but still an enjoyable listen, with gleefully playful lyrical content and a couple of songs that prove that despite the operas and the morbidity of All Days Are Nights: Songs For Lulu, Wainwright is still happiest in pop. ‘Jericho’ recalls the wonderful production of Marius de Vries on the two Want albums, while ‘Perfect Man’ is also Rufus at his bombastic best. The humour of ‘Rashida’ is also a welcome addition, with the Mark Ronson experiment proving successful if not spectacular.