Kaiser Cartel
Secret Transit
(bluhammock)

Songwriting is truly an art form. Well structured imaginative lyrics can be frighteningly beautiful. The kind of music you can listen to more than once on repeat and hear something different each time. On Kaiser Cartel’s new album, Secret Transit, they achieve what few artists do well: write beautiful songs. The Brooklyn duo strike folk rock gold on their new album with pretty vocals courtesy of Courtney Kaiser with songs going from folky to ethereal in just a few moments. The duo has grown from their previous efforts by leaps and bounds marking the duo as a band to watch.

The album starts off solidly with “Riverboat Dreams,” a nostalgic and gothlike pop song with modest, simple arrangements. Coherently mixing the duo’s vocals so they play off each other evocatively. Fast forward to my favorite track, “Falling.” For me this song resonated the most because the lyrics seem to be universal. It’s a metaphor for redemption. Falling and not being able to find something, anything to grasp to hold you up. Beauty in the struggle. Another great track is “Already Gone.” With sparse singular arrangements, it reminds the listener of classic love songs. Overall the album is a knock out with simple melodies set to beautifully written songs.

Truly a great album with many, many beautifully written tracks that are sequenced brilliantly. The album drifts from whimsical to romantic and at times to the darker side of life. A great album to turn to at any time.