King Tuff - Other (CD)

The ten tracks that make up The Other represent a kind of psychic evolution for King Tuff. No less hooky than previous records, the new songs ditch the goofy rock-and-roll bacchanalia narratives of earlier records in favor of expansive arrangements, a diversity of instrumentation, and lyrics that straddle the fence between painful ruminations and a childlike, creative energy untarnished by cynicism. The soulful and cosmic new direction is apparent from the album's first moments: introduced by the gentle ringing of a chime, acoustic guitar, and warm organ tones, ""The Other"" is a narrative of redemption born of creativity. As Thomas sings about being stuck in traffic, directionless, with no particular reason to be alive, he hears the call of ""the other,"" a kind of siren song that, instead of leading towards destruction, draws the narrator towards a creative rebirth. Elsewhere, tracks like ""Thru the Cracks"" and ""Psycho Star"" balance psychedelia with day-glo pop hooks. ""The universe is probably an illusion, but isn't it so beautifully bizarre?"" he asks on ""Psycho Star,"" providing one of the record's central tenets. At a time when everything in the world feels so deeply spoiled and the concept of making meaning out of the void seems both pointless and impossible, why not try?