It takes a strong combination of gumption and talent to sculpt rage into art, but the new collaboration between LOOR and Joshua Idehen is exemplary as to how it should be done. The EP, Kill The Bill, sees the pair channel understandable frustrations into trance-inspired protest songs, telling of the hate and the horror that the UK has seen under the reign of the Conservative government.
Thematically, the album explores how the government have passed bills and laws in an attempt to indoctrinate the public and fuel hate crimes, particularly focussing on the events of the BLM movement and the government’s pursuit of criminalising the act of protest. In that sense, the four tracks provide an astute summary of the events that have taken place over the last couple of years.
Sonically, the album sees electronic music fused with jazz, stemming from a bloodline of the previous work both parties have created. LOOR’s debut LP, Waters, saw transcendental beats parse the world of psychedelia in a refreshingly upbeat way, and Idehen’s partnerships with the likes of Sons of Kemet echo haunting spoken-word poetry. The instrumentation was composed with Idehen in mind, making the pairing inherently compatible, and perhaps explaining the cohesion throughout the EP. It creates a sense of urgency, pioneers for the right to protest, and spells out the experiences that the pair have felt as a result of government actions; lyrics such as ‘I used to feel safe in these ends / I used to call my neighbours my friends’ (Country I Cannot Call Home) are difficult to ignore, cutting through to the very heart of the issues inflicted by the passing of ill-considered laws.
Whilst the EP contains heavy themes, the instrumentals simultaneously allow the lyrics to be heard, and keep a flaming spirit alight with progressive beats and drum loops. Akin to the sounds of Jamie XX, the EP inspires change and provides a message of solidarity and unity. It would seem, however, that in a terrible sense of irony, these voices are being silenced, as many rejected social media advertisements suppress the promotion of the EP. This release came after a battle of rejection from record labels that shirk away from such blatant political statements, and so it seems several social media giants aim to appease this, damning the sponsored posts for “failure to comply to Ads about social issues”.
Overall, the EP is one of great significance, signposting positive social changes that should be encouraged as opposed to censored. It is available to purchase on Bandcamp under Optimo Music, on all popular streaming platforms now.
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