Kyle Craft – “Pentecost” (Singles Going Steady)

Emmanuel Elone: From Iron & Wine to Shabazz Palaces to the Postal Service, Sub Pop really has some excellent musicians from a variety of genres, and Kyle Craft is one of them. “Pentecost” is deceptively simple; at its core, the song is an acoustic guitar rock ballad with some bass and drums buried in the back. However, Craft makes the most of this bare bones yet lush instrumentation by singing with a great inflection in his voice that makes his voice distinct. The lyrics are poetic, the bridge is epic, and Craft’s vocals are stunning. The track ends a bit too softly for my taste, but that’s nothing when literally every other aspect of this tune is near perfect. [8/10]

Chris Ingalls: I love this guy’s voice, a really pure, gleaming instrument capable of some pretty good power-pop shouting without really losing sight of what makes a good song. I’m hearing some Ben Folds sophistication, maybe a bit of Harry Nilsson, and a weird little minor-key interlude that shows a nice songwriting and arranging range. For a debut album, it’s surprisingly — almost shockingly — ambitious. I hope this guy doesn’t peak too soon, because he sounds destined for great things. [8/10]

Pryor Stroud: “Hard Currency” investigates what it would sound like if an audiovisual glitch became a permanent and omnipresent attribute of your hard-drive. The bouncy, unyielding techno synth line is spliced with interstitial mumblings and sound-effect flashes, but there’s nothing particularly adventurous here sonically, leaving the track a listenable but ultimately unmemorable endeavor. [5/10]

Chad Miller: The verses have annoying vocals, and it’s just not that good of a melody. The chorus is a big improvement on the verses though, even if it doesn’t sound particularly unique. It has a nice ending too which helps you forget those rougher sections. [5/10]

Kyle Craft‘s debut album, Dolls of Highland, releases April 29 via Sub Pop.

SCORE: 6.50