Country : UK / United Kingdom Label : XL Recordings / Matador Genres and styles : Hip Hop / Jazz / Pop / Post-Punk / Punk Year : 2020

Man Alive!

· by Alain Brunet

Archy Marshall has already amply demonstrated his talent and vision with The Ooz, highlighting his knack for blending jazz, post-punk, balladry, hip hop, gritty tone, organized chaos and deep sensuality. A schoolboy crooner, hungover bard, and dishevelled night owl, the young Englishman resurfaces with Man Alive! under the banner of King Krule. For those shaken by his previous recordings, this opus was eagerly awaited. The first listens of Man Alive! may not have the immediate impact of his previous efforts, given that he’s now a known quantity, but… the seeds of Man Alive! do finally sprout, slowly but surely.

As one might desire, baritone sax, jazzy guitars and occasional voices from beyond the grave are here, as are phone-message psalmodies and post-punk jolts. This approach is more broad, and less depressive and agitated than expected. It seems that Mr. Marshall is on the verge of becoming a father, dividing his time between South London and Cheshire, where he envisions a more peaceful existence with wife and child.

In a fit of newfound family-man orthodoxy, Marshall even confessed to wallowing in the “super bizarre” in The Ooz, to justify the reduction of contrasts in Man Alive! It’s a shame he’s so self-flagellating, because there will be those who judge this new offering, as sensual and fluid as it may be, as perhaps not “super bizarre” enough… although very successful, one has to admit over subsequent listens. And long live the family!

Latest 360 Content

Sight + Sound | Fili Gibbons

Sight + Sound | Fili Gibbons

Opera McGill | Imeneo of Handel through the lens of Patrick Hansen

Opera McGill | Imeneo of Handel through the lens of Patrick Hansen

Mivos Quartet: three times Reich at Bourgie

Mivos Quartet: three times Reich at Bourgie

Éléonore Lagacé and “Brûlez-moi vive”: pop on fire

Éléonore Lagacé and “Brûlez-moi vive”: pop on fire

Gloin – All of your anger is actually shame (and I bet that makes you angry)

Gloin – All of your anger is actually shame (and I bet that makes you angry)

Pro Musica | Piano prodigy Jaeden Izik-Dzurko: “serious”, “introverted” and… extremely refined

Pro Musica | Piano prodigy Jaeden Izik-Dzurko: “serious”, “introverted” and… extremely refined

Boubé – Voyager

Boubé – Voyager

An Invitation to Travel by Boubé

An Invitation to Travel by Boubé

Ingrid Saint-Pierre – Five Upright Piano Songs

Ingrid Saint-Pierre – Five Upright Piano Songs

SAT | Le Couleur Changes Spectrum, But First…

SAT | Le Couleur Changes Spectrum, But First…

Whispering Worlds – Cosmic Cliffs

Whispering Worlds – Cosmic Cliffs

ContaQt/Yaz Lancaster/Evan Ziporyn – ConneQt IV

ContaQt/Yaz Lancaster/Evan Ziporyn – ConneQt IV

Nick Storring – Mirante

Nick Storring – Mirante

Housewife – Girl Of The Hour

Housewife – Girl Of The Hour

Los Pirañas – Una Oportunidad Más de Triunfar en la Vida

Los Pirañas – Una Oportunidad Más de Triunfar en la Vida

Ariane Brisson/Philip Chiu – Prokofiev: Flute and Piano Sonatas

Ariane Brisson/Philip Chiu – Prokofiev: Flute and Piano Sonatas

The girls slay Turbo Haus

The girls slay Turbo Haus

marcel – ô fornaiz

marcel – ô fornaiz

Bella White: a newer country bluegrass star

Bella White: a newer country bluegrass star

Classic Rock… Hard Rock… Bob Rock… The Damn Truth!

Classic Rock… Hard Rock… Bob Rock… The Damn Truth!

Dicko Fils: on the road to modernity for the Fulani people

Dicko Fils: on the road to modernity for the Fulani people

Ana Krstajić et Joey Reda – Confluence

Ana Krstajić et Joey Reda – Confluence

CC Duo/collectif9 – Re/String

CC Duo/collectif9 – Re/String

Jan Lisiecki – Preludes

Jan Lisiecki – Preludes

Subscribe to our newsletter