The sonic blend is intoxicating.
Kllo's fans have been testifying about the duo's compelling music for the last few years, a beautiful and brilliant modern amalgam that layers multiple flavors atop a typical construct. Kllo, comprised of Australian cousins Chloe Paul and Simon Lam, enjoyed early success at home and abroad with moving EPs like Cusp (2014) and Well Worn (2016) before their 2017 full-length, Backwater, placed them squarely on the map in the U.S. and U.K.—earning serious international buzz.
This year, the band has released a couple new singles that further illustrate their ability to slide right through preconceived categories. Take "Candid," the band's latest single that has us in its grip. "No disrespect/I just want to keep it candid/Guess that we've got different standards/So low", sings Paul to what is, by definition, a typical contemporary R&B groove. Some spoken phrases over a repeated melodic line set to a sultry groove—except there's so much more at work.
Kllo's love for trippy rhythmic layers (see "Virtue" for the most manic and "Not Like Them" for how their tones and beats can bring in a global flavor) and the surrounding synth defies any real urban feel, however, and places it instead in a moody mix for a late night drive. It's electropop with a sultry R&B feel, but Paul's confessional lends gravity to what could pass as superficial sonic candy.