Kyte - The Luminaire, London - 25/9/07
4/5
By: Alex Lee Thomson
Some bands you dance to, some you rock to, and others you simply enjoy. You inescapably gaze at Kyte... not that you couldn't dance/rock to their music should the mood take you. They're a band who are from the new school of music thinking where the overindulgence of four guys playing post-Libertine rock isn't regarded as distinctive anymore, aspiring more to the likes of Sigur Ros, Coda, Maps or Chakras. They've got that same sense of atmosphere as Sigur Ros, an aspect that's slightly lost on their records, the ambience at London's Luminaire thick with the arrangements that this band have clearly worked long and hard over, the results speaking for themselves.
It's not that they're copying Sigur Ros though, rather reinventing that massive Scandinavian sound to fit the grime of Britain and the punk-rock scene. There's an imaginative sense of discovery to their live set which leads you down the rabbit hole of each song not knowing what world you're likely to fall into. That's their prowess as performers, and your hook as an audience member.
'Secular' and 'Boundaries' are two majestically constructed tracks that bleed attention to detail and malicious vigour, both sweeping the small venue with a feeling of dignity and substance, dragging you harshly towards their compositions with an overwhelmingly liberated delivery. We've all had such a great fascination with British guitar bands and as each new wave unites them all into one block of also-ran noise, it's musicians like these who inspire you to carry on and go out there and discover new bands.
Kyte are proof that the UK is still capable of producing bands that make you reassess the scene and thank whoever it is that inspired them for doing so. Bands like this only get better, more dynamic, and at an already such high standard, Kyte are certainly ones to investigate while they're still playing small clubs.
Artists in this article: Kyte
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