One of the many things I love about being a music journalist is the never-ending stream of new music that comes my way on any given day. Sometimes it’s good stuff, sometimes it’s terrible, and sometimes it’s “where have you been all my life?” The last one is how I felt after just one listen to Kariti’s latest album, Still Life (Lay Bare Recordings).
Kariti is a Russian-born poet, composer, and multi-instrumentalist residing in Italy who delivers her own take on dark folk, blending it with dream pop and shoegaze. The album opens with a short ambient noise track called “Spine,” which takes us right into “Nothing.” With its dark, chamber-music-inspired piano and sporadic bursts of distorted noise and drums, “Nothing” bends into Tori Amos territory at times without being overly obvious or predictable. The influence is there, but Kariti chose to create something from it rather than replicate it.
“Stems” captures the ethereal sonic soundscape laid by Dead Can Dance but draws on the droning influence of more modern dark folk music. This keeps it sounding haggard and tired, yet it isn’t so new-sounding that it loses any character due to overproduction and/or compression.
Kariti spreads her wings wide, allowing her to cover a wide range of versatile and diverse ground. Reaching the electric guitar, “suicide by a thousand cuts” sounds like one of the best Emma Ruth Rundle songs that was never done. The chaotic drone of electric guitar layered on top of layers creates a wall of ambient sound that is both beautiful and unsettling. This song reminded me of going into a place you feel you shouldn’t be, only to end up basking in the glory of the haunting, doomy, droning soundscape.
The showstopper for me is “Naiznanku.” This is where all of the various influences on Kariti come together to form something truly special. Unable to actually pin a direct artist’s sound on this song, I felt that this song truly rose above the rest of the songs as what I can only describe as the anchor of the ship. Even the overall tone and vibe of the music feels tethered to a weight that is both immobilizing and freeing.
Still Life is an album that I am so glad showed up on my radar. Everyone needs mood music, and this is one of those albums that can both uplift and bring one down. It’s a chamber of eclectic sounds and dark, haunting undertones that genuinely need your full attention. This isn’t an album to put on in the background. This is an album to be felt and experienced in the moment, so be ready to be present when you listen to Still Life. It will take you somewhere and make you feel something, but where and what? That’s for you to decide.
Buy the album here:
https://kariti.bandcamp.com/album/still-life
8 / 10
DON DE LEAUMONT
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