REVIEW: KeepVivesNear - Now That We Know EP [Melting Pot Music]

Text: Stunt Keaton

Nos anticipamos a uno de esos discos que te zarandean desde el primer momento que lo escuchas. Desde el sello alemán Melting Pot Music aterriza KeepVibesNear. No os creáis que catalogar a este artista es tarea facil ya que desde el segundo uno la cantidad de matices que se le encuentran es bestial. Poder meterse de lleno en un trabajo tan personal como el de este EP titulado "Know That We Know" es ahondar en la capacidad de trasnformación de un artista llamado a ser uno de los grandes del underground contemporáneo. Podríamos pasar horas hablando de las características de su música y de sus técnicas pero la mejor de las prácticas es poder escuchar este inmenso trabajo. Aún no está en el mercado pero se pueden escuchar algunos adelantos. Hay que esperar hasta el día 3 de Septiembre así que vayan contando los días porque este trabajo quema.

"With the looks of a 90s R&B superstar and a delivery that owes more to King Krule than to

D'Angelo, KeepVibesNear doesn't fit into the usual boxes. Now he is finally blessing us with the

release of his long-anticipated EP, Now That We Know..

As a sequel to his early endeavor When Will We Realise?, the upcoming EP represents for KVN

“a reflection of self. In making these songs I found myself realising a lot of the emotions I wasn’t

admitting to myself. How to deal with your emotions as a man is something we aren’t trained

for, and I think this EP is my journey of finding that in myself and others.”

“I like to call my music ‘Noir R&B’, when I get into my bag on the real slow melancholic vibes”

KVN explains. The stripped-back, raw quality of KVN's vocals and the reflective nature of his

lyricism makes for a warming and addictive sound. With romance and relationships at the heart

of his lyrical content, he uses passion, depth, and imagery to explore the ups and downs of love

and the vulnerability of manhood.

“This EP is a special moment in my journey so far as me and Harvey Whyte made most of these

songs when we first met about two or three years ago. It’s crazy to think how far things have

come yet how much sentiment these songs still have” KVN recalls. Harvey Whyte has recently

laced tracks for the likes of Greentea Peng and Fatima and runs his own label, Studio 117.

Raised in Romford, London with family ties in Lagos, KVN has built a loyal following with a couple

of self-released songs that already earned him some plays on BBC1 Xtra and Rinse FM. After

participating in The Silhouettes Project (Enny, Kofi Stone, Summers Sons...), KVN signed with

Melting Pot Music where he released three singles, all of which were received very well and

enjoyed support by online media and tastemakers like Jamz Supernova, Jyoty, WDR Cosmo,

Grime Daily and Wordplay Mag."