Black Kites

Silver Tongues

By Kurt Reynolds

The appropriately named Silver Tongues new album, Black Kite, on Karate Body Records, portrays a musical expedition of life's events and does a pretty good job of it. What started as a one-man project in Louisville became a five-piece group endeavor. The record comes off as a somewhat epic soundtrack to a movie that was never made. "Ketchup," the first single, released on July 1, 2011, sounds like a voice in the darkness, beckoning to be heard. On this particular track, the instruments slightly overpower the poetic melody of the shouted vocals. Just under two minutes, the band tries to convey a lot of emotion on the track and seems to do it rather well.

The band has an orchestral sound with good lyrics, great melodies and harmonies. As stated on their Facebook page, the band examines the good and bad of life's events and writes with a hopeful outcome in the future. Between the first and last track on the album, listeners may hear a style similar to the Coldplay. For instance, some songs open with a one or two instruments and vocals, and then progress into something more symphonic.

Overall, Black Kite is a good listen, althoug – despite the effort of writing with a positive outcome – somewhat melancholy. During a live show, on the other hand, people might get their fingers burnt from holding up their lighters for the whole set. But this band is definitely worth checking out live, which is easily done since they are from this area. More information can be found at facebook.com/silvertonguesmusic. The album should be available at ear-X-Tacy.