Published on Unpaved 12.04.12
www.unpaved.com.au
Hot off the back of a hugely successful Australian tour, which included spots at the Port Fairy Folk Festival and Mossvale, Londoners ahab left behind a bevvy of new believers. Amid the hype and beneath the cryptic kmvt title is a country-folk EP well worth unraveling.
kmvt, produced by EP John Leckie (whose credits include Radiohead, Stone Roses, Muse and Beloowhead), strings along a handful of catchy, buoyant tunes that bounce in and out without fuss. While the temptation to gravel in ones own misfortunes is often enticing (in a self-indulgent, therapeutic way), ahab opts not for reproach but rather lessons learnt along the way. Wish You finds jubilation and cheek in the wake of a hurtful break-up with ‘I wish you well…feels good to know that I was your greatest mistake’. Much like that of Simon & Garfunkel, their happy-go-lucky vibe and silvery harmonies further strengthen their already chipper melodies. Lightnin’ Bug, for one, is nothing short of a foot-tapper, a song that will strike a chord with lovers and dancers alike.
Docker’s Hands is a family tale that will leave you feeling campfire-warm and complacent, if only for three minutes, before Call A Waiter will have you back on your feet. The country caper-beat swivels and dips around a frenetic hook, leaving you feeling alive and high like many of the tunes. Buried beyond the twang is ahab’s genuine zeal for all things country music, a springy energy that’s hard to ignore throughout their five-dittys. Where’s The One You Love rounds up the EP, stirring a sentimental blend of sorrow, faith and resolve, a track that leaves you feeling both empty in its sadness and elated in hope. The fifteen-minute collection is a promising prelim for things to come from ahab.
