Kero Kero Bonito - Outside 

For those who find the change of KKB's sound on *Time 'n' Place* jarring, here's the press release to better contextualize it: The sophomore full-length from Kero Kero Bonito, Time ‘n’ Place is an album ineffably shaped by the subconscious. Lead singer and chief lyricist Sarah Bonito (who was raised in the suburbs on the Japanese island Hokkaido) found herself rattled in recent years by recurring images in her dreams: a water park from when she was little, a hallway in her primary school. After those dreams started, she also received an unexpected photo from her brother: a picture of a plot of bare land that once held her childhood home, the house now demolished. (“I felt like I’d lost something, even though I didn’t know I needed it,” she says.) And in another heartbreak for Sarah, 2017 saw the death of her beloved childhood pet, a boy budgie named Nana whom she received soon after moving to the UK at age 13. At the same time, Sarah’s fellow KKB members experienced some life-changing upheaval, including the loss of several close family members. So when the London trio began writing again, they felt compelled to diverge from the carefree sensibilities of their early work (a form of kitsch electro-pop that jumbled up lo-fi dance music with bilingual lyrics, British TV references, and stories about animals). Resuming a very teenage and visceral approach to making music, KKB effectively morphed into a band, with Sarah on vocals, Jamie on bass, Gus on drums, and their friend James Rowland on guitar. Their debut for Polyvinyl, Time ‘n’ Place is a document of that band finding its voice, a coming-of-age story told in warped guitar solos, shining melodies, unnervingly tender lyrics about yogurt and seafoam and feral parakeets. Though much of Time ‘n’ Place was self-produced in Gus’s bedroom in the London suburb of Bromley, it was also partly recorded by Jimmy Robertson (Arctic Monkeys, Fuck Buttons) and Stereolab drummer Andy Ramsay (King Krule, Wire) at Ramsay’s Press Play Studio in South London. Along with Rowland, the album features contributions from noise/electronic musician Jennifer Walton, a string arrangement by composer Calum Bowen (aka bo en), and a three-part choir made up of Cecile Believe, Oscar Scheller, and Crying’s z (aka Elaiza Santos). Built on the same volatile energy that’s made KKB’s live shows famously mosh-heavy, Time ‘n’ Place collages those elements together in a sound that’s both chaotic as punk and symphonic as ’60s pop. For KKB the urgency of Time ‘n’ Place was imperative-they needed to process their pain and confusion in frantic, kinetic movements, and bashing away on drums and guitars felt more fitting than assembling songs on a laptop. It’s also much more true to their upbringing as musicians, back when Gus and Jamie were growing up in the South London suburbs and played in garage bands together all during their school days. With the added vision and otherworldly voice of Sarah-who spent her adolescence in the UK town of Kenilworth, and met Gus and Jamie on a web forum five years ago-the classically dissident music of their indie-rock forebears takes on weirder and more wonderful textures and colors, giving way to something dreamy and transcendent but not without its nightmare moments. While loss of innocence is an overriding theme on Time ‘n’ Place, the album is weighted with existential reflections of all kinds. “Make Believe” is partly about lucid dreaming, but it’s also about self-inflicted anxiety, and the danger in slipping into fantasy as a way to escape fear. “Time Today” is about waking up early and feeling determined to make the most of the day, and the sad/sweet naïveté of that optimism in the face of self-sabotage. “Only Acting” follows a social-media-age identity crisis, the song itself coming unhinged as its narrator spins out of control. And on “Dear Future Self,” KKB examine their worries about the state of the world, bending time by including a line about global warming in a song styled toward Brill Building pop. Elsewhere on Time ‘n’ Place, KKB look into multiverse theory (on “If I’d Known,” a Randy Newman-inspired song featuring a verse rapped by Jamie) and the shift in perspective that comes with getting older (on “Swimming,” a bittersweet tribute to singer-songwriter Yumi Matsutoya). Recorded with a gang of their dearest friends, all singing together in a ragtag chorus, “Sometimes” is a tear-jerkingly hopeful song about pushing through depression. An album concerned with the sanctity of physical space in an increasingly virtual world, Time ‘n’ Place also speaks to the thrill of going outside (on “Outside”), the tranquility of the town dump (on “Dump”), and the surreal stillness of a deserted rest stop (on “Rest Stop,” a track that finishes the album in a beautifully glitched-out non-ending). Within the cartography of Time ‘n’ Place, the most important space is the suburbs, an aspect of their shared past that KKB find infinitely formative. As kids, each member quickly learned the need to invent their own wildness and excitement, embracing misfit status in a place where any form of self-expression could be seen as aberrant. That iconoclastic spirit has carried over to KKB’s current role in the musical landscape, with Time ‘n’ Place partly conceived as a reaction against the sterility of playlist culture. It’s a sublimely untidy album, anarchic but balletic in grace, music born from willful imagination and a sense of purpose best captured in the band’s own words: “More than ever music needs to be set free, because it can be anything, so we just decided to do whatever the fuck we wanted.”

goodness! The contrast between her voice and the instrumental is just brilliant

This opening track goes soo hard.. I'm 4 years late , just discovered KKB and totally in love with their music...

This album has the funniest fucking cover art. For some reason the way Sarah looks just cracks me up every time

pumped to mosh at a kkb concert

REAL BONITO HOURS

I hope all my fellow KKB fans have a gud October. It was nice being here at 3AM with you all.

the harmony on the line at 0:50 is so unbelievably gorgeous, I have to go and play it back over and over whenever i listen, i literally cant stop myself

Am I the only one that cries at this song? I think the way they describe wind through the lyrics is astonishingly beautiful. This as an intro song is perfect.

Am I the only one who prefers noise rock KKB?

This blew my mind when I turned the album on and heard this. Almost couldn't tell it was Kero Kero Bonito. This is so so awesome, and so different from anything they've done before. Mad respect

I can imagine running through the autumn leaves listening to this!

I can't describe the feeling I get when I listen to this band. It feels like a sunny Utopia when listening at a worrying time

Can't wait to see them on tour this month

The bass and the harmony, holy shit, this is too good.

Amazing track. 10/10. Has to be my second favourite opening track to an amazing album called “outside”.

Stayed up till midnight for this album to drop Totally worth it

Hello, i am mexican and i love your's songs

This Is such a fun listen. So good that it doesn't even deserve a video

KKB are masters of the unexpected upload

Oh so kkb is noise rock too... not gonna complain

Can´t wait for their tour man! I´m so exited!

This song feels like a child actor who you loved and related to, growing up and realizing they’re disappointed with the world. And you still relate to them.

💘💟💝💞 This whole album gonna be my autumn/winter bop omg ❤️💓💖💞

I love love love this and the whole album

Thank you. You propably might not even notice this but this brang memories of some really good times in my childhood.Since im living one of my biggest nightmares for years.Thank you, kkb

I fricking love this song thank you KKB, very cool

It's all genres in one band and I love it

wow new style wow amazing great job!

I’m so excited to see you guys in San Antonio!!

I WANT MORE STUFF LIKE THIS FROM YOU GUYS!

I HEAR THE DRIZZLE DRUMMING DOWN ♥︎

New album is beyond incredible!

_Sounds like a scott pilgrim song._

Strong start for this album. Love it

Love it.

AAAAAAA TODAS SON HERMOSAS!

All of her songs are so good

Such a great new style, Loved the old jpop vibe, but gotta love me some Alt rock/pop, and some great vocals and sampling. 😀👌

PROTIP: There's a playlist on KKB's channel ready if you want to listen to the new songs in order

this is so fire

The hype is real! KKB is so awesome.

While Swimming is my favorite of this album, this album is definitely one of my favorites that's come out of KKB.

Did not expect this, but not complaining. At all.

I Loveeeeeee this

that new dg track sounds great

Sooooooooooooooooo many I love it

masterpiece

My favorite song

I think I smell the rain again I see the leaves getting dewy They're breathing Fresh air awakens everything While the winds are barging through They greet you Outside here Like any other morning Landing on cue I hear the drizzle coming down And then I realise in all of my life I don't think that I remember it being So vivid One two three four five six miles away I wonder if they notice over there? Until the light Throws colours across the vista Piling so high they reach out of sight To heaven

ok this one's great

mmm i can feel bo en in this song!

yes!

This is different but I like it

Quite the change of keys for a change of style.

I'm crying...)

Wtf that new album is rly awesome

Damn. The intro was loud for a KKB song...

Holy fuck. Actually just discovered this group two days ago, from flamingo. Heard trampoline and was hooked, extremely happy and carefree sounds. Listened to only acting and was EXTREMELY intrigued. I'm now here on this song and am baffled as to how fresh and original this group is. I love the intense contrasts between their debut and these works they're dropping now, it shows amazing artistic growth and potential. So excited to hear more. Their shows look like a fucking dream too

happy new year 2019 :)

Somebody mash this up with bill wurtz' outside pls

YES

intéressant, merci.

I'm in lesbian with this

good stuff

Wait, is this the entire album released, *for free?*

YYYYYEEEEEESSSS

Such a good song though. Beautiful harmonies.

wow

Heavy Medal

Strong AF opener

KKB goes shoegaze? I love it!

Basically, this is KKB’s Pinkerton

Holy Fuck this is like Depreciation Guild minus gimmick plus amazing

am happy

Scott Pilgrim vibes :D

HYPE

This reminds me anamanaguchi songs

I wanna go outside, out out out out outside

pls come to México

Is it weird that I don't know what word the lyrics are saying even when I focus really hard? These types of music really require me to read the lyrics to get it

Sunset overdrive is that you?

The start of the song sounds like when you start your ps1

Hype

DAMN THIS SHIT TIGHT

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! NEW KKB ALBUM!!!!!!!!! OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMG!!!!!!!! AAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

Yee

thank you Ratt Matson

Noice song

Okay did anyone else hear that guitar in the beginning and think of Death Grips' song Bottomless Pit? Because once I heard that I shouted to myself "I'LL FUCK YOU IN HALF" and it further cements my belief that Kero Kero Bonito is just Life Grips.

1,2,3!

ez AOTY

PLEASE COME TO BRAZIL

Do you guys know when time and place is coming out on cd

S c a r y m o n s t e r

They need this is the Scott pilgrim game soundtrack

Take care

kero

dewy

yooo what did i just hear