Search - Kaki King :: Dreaming of Revenge

The diminutive guitarist Kaki King acts her three roles--player, composer, and singer-songwriter--to the hilt on her fourth album. Dreaming of Revenge ricochets between instrumentals and hushed vocal numbers united by King's unerring sense of melodicism and her prodigious, two-handed tapping guitar technique augmented by electronic delays, loops, and other effects. "Pull Me Out Alive" sounds like a pop hit from an alternate universe, with King's softly purring voice flitting between chanted verse and a siren-call chorus. Several numbers evoke gothic forest or moonlit city dreamscapes. In particular, "Montreal," a guitar duet with producer Malcolm Burn featuring ornate layers of acoustic, electric, and steel guitars. King's most affecting recordings are the stark ones like "Life Being What It Is," a ballad about heartbreak and sugarcoated anger featuring King's fragile vocalizing backed only by acoustic six-string guitar. Diverse and exceptional, this disc will win acceptance beyond her core audience of guitar fans. --Ted Drozdowski