Kite Thief - ‘Ambiviolent’
Kite Thief
The hype for Kite Thief has been real here at The Scene. We last spoke to the Bristol troupe at Misery Love Company (MLC) Festival, at the time only two singles from their new EP, Ambiviolent, had dropped. Three months later, the EP arrives tomorrow. Here’s what we think:
Ambiviolent goes off like a cannon with the opening track ‘The Tide’. Available since early August, this track actually raked in numerous listens in awe of how much ground they cover. Elin Allan is versatile, changing between strong melodic vocals to confident spoken passages. The mixing of the track is excellent. Each listen managed to distinguish a different and strong performance from each member. That said, it’s definitely carried by the guitar duties of Max Harris & Josh Bailey. It’s an unmistakable showing from them from the moments the guitar rings both in and out.
We were already tipped what to expect with 'Goldsick', when we spoke to Kite Thief at MLC. What started as a wholesome band retreat produced a heavy, anthemic floor shaker of a tuned. Based on the concept of karma coming back around to people, Elin's clean vocals shine through the first half of the track, before giving way to something…different. Max & Josh said at MLC that 'Goldsick' was like "a sea shanty" that became "suitably angry in places". That suitable anger takes the shape of a demonic-sounding double-vocal while saying they "hope you get stuck in traffic on the way to work". It's a simple message, and a crushing delivery.
'Judge Judy & Executioner' ('JJE'), which first dropped in October, keeps the frenetic pace going where 'Goldsick' left off. Elin cited 'JJE' as "probably my favourite song that we have ever written". The track is a good example of Kite Thief changing between styles. Elin also pointed to 'JJE' as "the most fun, energetic and cathartic song to play live".
That definitely seems to come through in the vocal performance. It's easy to imagine this having attitude slathered over it live, before going hell for leather with the heavy ending of the track. By comparison, 'Shush' is both a step slower and a step deeper. What that results in is a well performed, repeating, and disjointed instrumental. Combine this with lyrics that explode into harsh vocals, and the erratic perspective the song bases itself on comes to life quite well.
Finally there is the title track, ‘Ambiviolent’, the only track fans haven't had a taste of yet. This track ties a bow on things, while a lot of the EP takes aim at seemingly specific parties, this looks inward. It can be ambitious to base something around a term you've coined yourself, but the performance of the track manages to avoid any pitfalls with that. That said, 'Ambiviolent' does feel like a step in a different direction. Where all the other tracks seemed to bounce, this lulls. This is definitely a case of Kite Thief delivering on another promise they offered when we first spoke at 2000Trees Festival, that, "each new single introduced a new flavour". Fair warning, this new flavour sounds good, but might make you a little sad. That's not a criticism at all, as the track does its job and evokes emotion. Quality-wise, it ends on a high with a message that lingers.
Kite Thief promised us "a new chapter" with music that would be equal parts "angry, energetic, something you can mosh to, dance to, bang your head to…whatever moves you’re capable of, you can do it". It turns out, this release is all of those things and more. Ambiviolent feels like a maturing and questioning release. Where will they go next? We don’t know, but we’re here for it.
Ambiviolent from Kite Thief is out 15 December via Year of The Rat Records and available on all good streaming platforms. Catch them on tour early in new the year and no doubt throughout 2024.
