Music Review: 6 Feet Beneath the Moon

King Krule, Archy Marshall’s artistic alias, has carved himself as an iconoclastic figure. He was raised in artistically fertile South London and first gained blogosphere prominence under the moniker ‘Zoo Kid’ before finally choosing King Krule as his nickname in 2011. His lanky, fragile 19-year-old body with a freckled, pale visage speaks little to the rich jarring baritone that erupts from him when he performs.

Marshall infuses his work with a variety of disparate genres. "6 Feet Beneath the Moon," his first-full length album as King Krule, serves as an index of the exciting teenager’s first heavily-scrutinized release. The record was produced by Marshall himself as well as Rodaidh McDonald, who has also helped produce albums for The xx and Savages. "6 Feet Beneath the Moon" retains the minimalist voice-in-a-vacuum quality that has spread from McDonald’s efforts to many other darkwave and indie acts like Holy Ghost and How to Dress Well. In interviews, Archy Marshall is at ease while discussing the afrobeat and jazz styling of Fela Kuti and Chet Baker respectively—yet his sonic vision also incorporates many tropes found in London’s lush underground electronic scene like breakbeat kick-drums and pitch-modulated vocals. He coalesces these influences into his production and flows weary laments over them to striking, and often-incisive effect.

"6 Feet Beneath the Moon" launches with his most assured effort yet, ‘Easy Easy.' There is a dark lyricism that diffuses into the guitar riffs and is the perfect setting for his voice’s jaded supplications—"And easy come and easy go/We aren’t true I told you so"—to some mysterious person on the phone with him.

On ‘Baby Blue,' Marshall howls adolescent romantic melancholy into the cold night air of his lyrical world. His voice—though rich—is too abrasive to be romantic in any traditional sense. There’s a vitality that lingers, yet too often fades, which grabs at you when you’re listening. This waning energy in his performance is where many of the other songs, which may have broken the cusp from good to great—like ‘Baby Blue’ and ‘Has this Hit?’—falter.

King Krule’s fusillade of Morrissey-esque wails overpowers but still complements the curated instrumentals, and is his most treasured talent. He works best in songs that capture the resonance of his vocal skills like the prominently guitar-based ‘Out Getting Ribs’ and the jazz hip-hop inflected ‘Neptune Estate.' On ‘Neptune Estate,’ Marshall exhibits astounding feel for his lyrics, even making a line like “corrosively tread through emotionally spoon-fed purpose” sound soulful.

Archy Marshall is comparable to Ty Segall's place as rising star of the garage rock scene here in the states. They are both reinvigorating the indie scenes, Segall with his energetic output rich in quantity and quality and Marshall with his increasing presence that has been lauded by fellow contemporary star Frank Ocean. "6 Feet Beneath the Moon" is a unique glimpse into the beginning stages of one of the most promising characters in music.