BLONDiE – Session 1

21-year-old artist KiLLOWEN showed off his musical prowess with last week’s release of ‘BLONDiE – Session 1’. A multi-instrumentalist, singer, and rapper, the young Londoner is firing on all cylinders and fits well in an increasingly popular alternative hip-hop scene coming out of the UK. Whilst KiLLOWEN’s latest track does not feature his impressive vocals, it exhibits his 12-year instrumental experience that stems from the tender age of eight. 

With a swung drum beat, sultry keys and a smooth flute, KiLLOWEN uses a guitar to do his talking on the brilliant ‘BLONDiE – Session 1’. Short but sweet, the track identifies more as a loose jam than carefully structured composition. Whilst I try to refrain from comparing artists as it detracts from their own sound, ‘BLONDiE – Session 1’ takes influence from Tom Misch and Yussef Dayes’ magnificent ‘What Kinda Music’, letting the instruments express the song’s story.

Having performed at Camden Assembly and received backing from BBC 1Xtra and Complex UK, KiLLOWEN is certainly on the right track. If there is more music of this calibre to come, we’ll be sure to see his name more often.