Listening to experimental producer and vocalist Klein’s debut album Only is like taking a trip to a destination unknown; her empyreal vocals, her warped ambient sounds and clashing so-wrong, so-right rhythms are the only signposts. The impressive self-produced debut release is like an aural collage, patches of the chorus of Brandy’s Full Moon, (she’s a big fan!) next to the ‘trussssstttt me daddy’ opener of grime god Skepta’s “Shutdown,” all sandwiched between lo-fi melodic hooks and specially selected samples.
Klein has had a nomadic upbringing, having been born in London, spending time in Los Angeles, and living in Surulere and Lagos before settling in London again for secondary school. Having been born into a traditional Nigerian family, she explains music wasn’t necessary part of her plan. “My mom didn’t encourage me to make music, she bought me a keyboard in hopes of me maybe joining the church’s band. Until last year I was very anxious about even letting my friends know about my music and my family still don’t really know what I make,” she comments.
Her track, “Marks of Worship” was written as a form of release and self-therapy: “I was really sad and I sort of needed something for myself; something therapeutic because I felt like I needed to cleanse myself of all this bad energy so I decided to make a song about praise and worship. I get WhatsApp messages from my auntie’s preaching to me so I tried to translate that into a song.”
The result? An ambient five-minute spoken word that reaches a crescendo at its peak with the chords reminiscent of classic gospel songs. Immerse yourself in the accompanying video below, directed by Akinola Davies Jr., that depicts a despondent Klein in the throes of a traditional Nigerian celebration before partaking in a ritualistic and somewhat surreal spiritual cleansing.
Klein performs at Hub16 Stoke Newington, this Thursday, June 30. More information here.