Sydney singer/producer/multi-instrumentalist Klue has recently unveiled his impressive debut EP Daybreak which features two killer singles, ‘Hiding’ and ‘So Good’, alongside two previously unheard tracks, ‘Uh Oh’ and ‘My Friend’.
Drawing inspiration from a love of Afrobeat, Daybreak is overflowing with blazing horns, electronic beats and soul.
With this EP Klue has truly created a cultural feast for the ears and mind, honouring a vast range of influences from Jamie xx, Fela Kuti, Hermitude, D’Angelo, Bonobo, and Fat Freddy’s Drop.
To celebrate this impressive EP, Klue himself has kindly penned a track by track accompaniment to the EP which you can check out alongside the EP stream below. Give it a listen and if you like what you’re hearing pop by Klue’s Facebook page for more info.
Hiding
This one is about those nights when you’ve danced past sunrise and the morning people start emerging in active wear, and you can either descend into self loathing or continue enjoying your adventure with your head held high. And I’m suggesting the latter here!
This one has elements of a whole bunch of different sounds from quite different music that I love as a listener all rolled together, and it was the first time that I really felt I’d made that work.
It’s also the first track I had ever released featuring my voice on it too, so it’s kinda special to me in that regard.
Uh Oh
The way I approached this record as a whole was more from the perspective of a producer, rather than a singer or songwriter. Even though I really enjoyed doing the vocals on the other tracks, I wanted to keep this one completely instrumental – just as a producer track.
When I first wrote this I had sliced up an Acapella from a Classic soul record and used it as an instrument, just as a placeholder, but when the time came to remove it I’d become attached to the sound I’d got out of it, so I ended up re-singing the sample (which wasn’t easy) and then rebuilding from there. That took some time!
So Good
The hook for this one came to me when I was on a dance floor at a warehouse party (it was pretty late at night), knowing I had to work the next day! It’s for those times when doing the most ‘responsible’ thing, isn’t necessarily the right thing to do!
I’ve been having a great time doing this one live, the big percussion parts are particularly fun to play – the SPD takes a beating during this tune.
This one actually evolved a fair bit since it was ‘finished’. It was Mastered and all ready to go, but then I started playing it live while I was on tour ahead of its release and I started experimenting with the structure and I jamming different bits on it.
What was then supposed to be a Radio Edit turned into a whole new production and arrangement (apologies to my label for all the chaos that caused)! It’s definitely much stronger for it though.
My Friend
I actually started this one years ago, and its skeleton was just hanging out on my hard drive, waiting to be finished.
Over the course of a night I got a few calls from a mate where it was really clear something was wrong but he wouldn’t let on what was up.
I was pretty worried and really didn’t know what to do, other than be there to talk to. I was in the studio and in between these calls I just started writing to collect my thoughts.
Upcoming Shows
Friday, June 10 – Melbourne Old Mates w/Ribongia
Saturday June 11 – Geelong Uno Dance Club
Friday, June 17 – Sydney Factory Floor w/Ribongia
Saturday, June 18 – Newcastle Argyle w/Ribongia
