By: Jon Harrison
King Krule has provided one of the most unique sounds in music with his raw and hyper-emotional tracks and albums that boast such a unique feel that cannot be duplicated. The music pseudonym for Archy Marshall has garnered many fans and admirers because of his remarkable ability to blend genres while making them into a trademark sound of his own. So with it being a Monday night and a sold-out show at White Oak Music Hall, this was a performance that many were looking forward to since the previously cancelled stop in 2020 due to the pandemic, which felt like an eternity to see this truly unique musician.
The show would begin with a track from the 2020 release Man Alive!, with the room being so dark that you could barely see Archy and the rest of the band. Funny enough, it didn’t matter because it felt like the only thing that was important was the music, and the music only, with Archy’s soft vocals coming through the speakers. Everything was thrilling, from the hot feeling in the room to the non-stop dancing of the saxophone player to the erratic feelings of songs like Half Man Half Shark. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, the softer portions of the show would come in the form of songs like Baby Blue and Slush Puppy, where it felt like the moment where you could breathe a bit and feel the emotions that were running through King Krule and the band all night. Finally, this very long set that felt like such a rush had concluded from the album 6 Feet Beneath the Moon with the track Out Getting Ribs.
After waiting so long to see King Krule, I can honestly say that he did not disappoint and really delivered on every level that anyone could have expected of him. Being able to watch him play made me admire and appreciate the level that he’s been able to achieve while also knowing that what I was seeing was special in so many ways. Simply put, I felt lucky that the musical gods created a unicorn like King Krule to play and give us the top-tier experience that he gave us that night.
⎯
