Multi-instrumentalist producer-songwriters Jen O’Connor and Eric Krans are fearless in their willingness to explore new sound palettes for their intimate brand of art-pop. Throughout their progression from indie-folk, to stomp and clap trance-folk, to “campfire disco” -as Pitchfork described their sophomore release, Wahzu Wahzu -The Parlor continue to experiment with new instrumentation and blend their set of genre and stylistic songwriting influences. Kiku is a deeply personal concept record for The Parlor.
Kiku, the Japanese word for chrysanthemum, began blooming in Krans and O'Connor’s farmhouse garden immediately following their second miscarriage, and so became a symbol of their grief, despair, resilience and faith. Kiku sounds moodier, gloomier and more anxious than The Parlor's previous music. It also feels simultaneously relaxed and playful in a way that balances the album's heaviness with a showy bloom; an elaborate floral display. It's a serious, and even sometimes sexy indie-pop drama; a confession of two lovers trying over and over again.
Jeremy [Six Strings]
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