Modern Yesterdays

Modern Yesterdays
Modern Yesterdays
Studio album by Kaki King
Released	October 23, 2020
Recorded	March 2020
Studio	New York City, New York, United States
Genre	Experimental rock
Length	46:06
Language	Instrumental
Label	Cantaloupe Music
Producer	Kaki King
Kaki King chronology

Modern Yesterdays is a 2020 studio album by American rock guitarist Kaki King, release on Cantaloupe Music.

Recording and release

King built the album around a live performance piece Data Not Found that would be toured as a stage show, but these plans were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Recording the album in March 2020, everyone in the studio got the disease, leaving the guitarist struggling to recover her dexterity as a musician almost a year later.^[1] Preparation for the recording and stage show included King making custom-designed guitars with a luthier^[2]^[1] and using obscure technology such as the Vo96, which changes string vibrations on her guitar to achieve unique sounds.^[3] To finalize the recordings, King put guitar and percussion parts to tape, leaving the rest of the songs to be created by sound designer Chloe Alexandra with King coming in at the final mix to approve the recordings.^[3]

Reception

Editors at AllMusic Guide scored this release 4.5 out of five stars, declaring it among the Best of 2020, with critic Thom Jurek spotlighting several tracks where King's experimentation shines, with descriptions such as "her deft, muscular fingerpicking rings across the middle- and lower-register strings amid a labyrinth of refracted sounds -- bubbles, wordless synthed vocal choruses, percussive reverb, etc. -- as she moves through intricate, driving, polytonal melodies articulated in several musical languages simultaneously".^[2]

Track listing

All songs written by Kaki King

"Default Shell" – 3:32
"Can't Touch This or That or You or My Face" – 4:08
"Teek" – 4:31
"Godchild" – 4:54
"Rhythmic Tiny Sand Ball Patterns" – 4:21
"Puzzle Me-You" – 4:25
"Final State" – 4:32
"Lorlir" – 2:49
"Sanitized, Alone" – 4:19
"Sei sei" – 3:53
"Forms of Light and Death" – 4:42

Personnel

Kaki King – guitar, production
Chloe Alexandra – sound design, co-production
John Brown – art direction, graphic design
Ralph Farris – viola on "Teek"
Michael Gordon – executive production
Úlfur Hansson – arrangement on "Forms of Light and Death"
Jessica Templin King – artwork
David Lang – executive production
Arjan Miranda – engineering, co-production
Sarah Register – mastering
Kenny Savelson – executive production
Julia Wolfe – executive production
Ebru Yildiz – photography

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Millevoi, Nick (January 26, 2021). "Kaki King: "My Stamina and Accuracy Have Gone to Shit"". Premier Guitar. Premier Guitar. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
^ ^a ^b Jurek, Thom. "Kaki King – Modern Yesterdays". AllMusic Guide. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
^ ^a ^b Corey, Daniel (May 14, 2022). "Innovation in Adversity: Kaki King Prevails in Modern Yesterdays". Guitar Girl Magazine. Retrieved May 17, 2023.

External links

Official website
Modern Yesterdays at Discogs
Modern Yesterdays at MusicBrainz (list of releases)
Page from Cantaloupe Music
Review from 5 Finger Review

[covid-1] Millevoi, Nick (January 26, 2021). "Kaki King: "My Stamina and Accuracy Have Gone to Shit"". Premier Guitar. Premier Guitar. Retrieved May 17, 2023.

[amg-2] Jurek, Thom. "Kaki King – Modern Yesterdays". AllMusic Guide. Retrieved May 17, 2023.

[ggm-3] Corey, Daniel (May 14, 2022). "Innovation in Adversity: Kaki King Prevails in Modern Yesterdays". Guitar Girl Magazine. Retrieved May 17, 2023.

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