Each Measure Feature: Al Kenizo

FEATURE

“Don’t Lock Me Out” by Al Kenizo took me by surprise and continued to do so for all four minutes and seventeen seconds. The steady rhythm and mellow vocals create a steady and spacious throughline, the skeleton of the song on which a variety of spicy textures hang themselves. The variety of sounds is a percussive feast swirling together in a groovy and danceable flow.

What starts as a seemingly darker electronic song is quickly broken up with the layering of all sorts of sounds. Joined by a funky bassline and some softly vibrating vocals, Al Kenizo’s vibrant taste is a fresh and potentially limitless playground. Bongos, didgeridoo, jingle bells, and synthy strings all come out to play. Through all the eclecticism, I find one of the carrying and unifying aspects is the timbre and seemingly “digital” quality. That clean-cut sound of the percussion is cross-cut with glowy synths and soulful vocals. The vocals offer a dimensionality with expressive singing and build as voices weave from the forefront to the backdrop of the track.

Watching some visualizations and videos for this track, the montage of images and effects mimics the same collage within the track itself. The two complement each other with their continuous stream of input, all ebbs and flows kept at a manageable level. All things combined, there may be a teetering on the edge of...well...either confusion or monotony. But rather, Al Kenizo successfully manages to stay away from feeling flattened, instead opting for a grooviness over drama.

As for the face behind this unique sound? Al Kenizo remains a bit of a mystery. I was surprised that the very vibey and undeniably “cool” tone of “Don’t Lock Me Out” was actually created during a time of trauma. The experience Al Kenizo claims was the motivation to expand and venture to new creative places. The lyrics speak of trying to persevere through a struggle during a dark chapter. The effect is quite profound, a striking new face for an honest bare-all story. Al Kenizo has caught my attention, and there’s an exciting stack of recent singles to maintain it!

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