Key Out
afterville
(False Peak Records)
4/5
The third full-length from Sydney, Australia-based indie band Key Out, afterville, was recorded while their crew was living across three cities in lockdown, and the end result is gorgeous.
I was skeptical to start since the tracks consist of one-word song titles such as “train,” “face,” “tree,” and “drive” (in that order), but was happy to discover that the style itself was not minimalistic. The acoustic guitar melodies and soft voices are peaceful, but not in a way that puts me to sleep.
The use of a synthesizer and background vocals give the sound some beautiful layers, and although most of the songs faded out after a few minutes I found myself wishing that they continued.
I would absolutely recommend afterville to those looking for a calming playlist, and hopefully Key Out continues to produce great, mellow records.