EP Review :: Khushi - Phantoms

Khushi

Phantoms

March 3 2014 (Laissez Faire Club)

8.5/10

Words: Andrew Major

London-based singer-songwriter Khushi has been gaining momentum along with an increasingly large, loyal fanbase in recent months as the cards have been laid out for his imminent entrance onto this summer’s festival stages and radio waves. Khushi has come a long way, both in profile and musical prowess since we last caught up with him at Hoxton’s Bar & Kitchen back in October; support slots with latest mega-stars London Grammar have done wonders in the lead-up to the release of this debut EP.

Khushi’s overall style and sound is certainly in no way genre defining, however, the delivery and presentation is executed to perfection for the duration of the small, but mighty, three-track offering. Nostalgic waves of Bombay Bicycle Club’s early releases wash over as Khushi’s vocal tone could easily be mistaken as that of BBC frontman Jack Steadman. Khushi, however, appears to have the knack of sounding frightfully similar to the aforementioned, but with little sense of unoriginality, perhaps due to the earnest conveyance.

Title track ‘Phantoms’ has an ethereal quality of production with the haunting combination of male/female vocal creating a delicate web of textures. The addition of a subtle break-beat creates another dimension to the opening verse; post-chorus, however, proceedings do take a slight Mumford and Sons detour before the track is back on course and sonically dipping in and out of dynamics as ‘Phantoms’ canters towards its mountain-top finale. One of the real joys behind the EP is owed simply to the quality of the song-writing on display - any one of the three tracks chosen could have been selected. Lead track ‘One For Me’, for example, shows off the subtleties of Khushi’s sound, counteracting the softest whispers with grand harmonies and a truly glorious chorus section. Despite the EP coming in at a mere 10 minutes, Khushi manages to pack a remarkable amount of content into each track with ‘One For Me’ laced with half a dozen key melodies.

‘In The Sun’ closes off ‘Phantoms’ in energetic style as Khushi’s dulcet tones peak and trough between verse and chorus creating the holy grail of the indie genre; something accessible to a wider audience which retains all the integrity and creative edge the artist deserves. Khushi has conjured up a robust collection of masterfully created and produced tracks that are sure to prick up the ears of the desired audience.