Kairvina’s debut EP reads a lot like a confession – fresh and unprocessed, like talking to someone who is describing anxiety. It unfolds like a personal diary of a seventeen year old at the precipice of adulthood, some one who has to remember harsh truths capturing bitter days, wry realizations and reluctant hope.
The opening track, Eternal, positions itself in what can be called a simple space with meditative intent. While the project aspires to emotional depth and sonic minimalism, it can often seem a tad bit too bland.
There’s something playful about her internet presence; even though her favourite artists appear to be Elliot Smith and Jeff Buckley. She appears to like music, rainfall and lemonade, simple pleasures of children of read Famous Five, which adds to the nuanced layers of her character, making her persona seem interesting to say the least.
Two songs on the EP are collaborations with Joshua Singh. Whilst The Damaged appears to be about the-one-who-got-away, the approach is a little too simple. On the other hand, Everything That Leaves is brilliant. Her vocals are very clearly inspired by Jeff Buckley, and she does a wonderful job echoing him. The lyricism is warm and will have the listener giggling and kicking their feet up in the air like a schoolgirl. It is about the sort of romance that we always wanted and perhaps even the angst that we secretly desire purely because it is a sign of passion.
The EP continues to steadily improve. Squint Your Eyes sounds like it could have been created by the lovechild of Bjork and Buckley and easily the track that stands out. It offers the most layered production in the EP, and the emotional tension is palpable – a tug of war between clarity and confusion, form and formlessness. Kairvina’s voice is raw, slightly grainy and vulnerable. Unblemished. The strong stretches far in terms of sonic exploration incorporating what seem to be field recordings of what seems to be a weeping woman out in the rain, creating a strong sense of place. It is music, with a sense of memory attached.
In the closing track of the EP, Bait, has a beautiful mournful undercurrent that washes over the listener. It evolves and lands. The EP itself is spiritually inclined with long, sustained synths and a vocal line that floats like smoke. Kairvina’s EP is simultaneously ghostly and grounded and lovely in a quiet way, but perhaps needs more risk. There is an edge of distortion and emotional ambiguity that pulls through, and the moments where Kairvina allows the atmosphere to shift and darken are the album’s strongest. When the introspective fog settles, the textures are rich. The EP does have a climax, and her work does show a sense of sonic identity and intention. Kairvina has laid out a quiet but solid foundation with Eternal.
