There is a moment towards the end of spellbinding lead single ‘Island’ where a synth-drenched crescendo drops to a bare bones vocal and every hair stands up on the back of your neck – this isn’t a rare occurrence on Outro, the second album from Montreal harpist Emilie Kahn, but it also acts as a perfect illustration of exactly what this record represents.
Formerly known as Kahn & Ogden and now simply going by her own full name, pretence falls away and honesty reigns on an album awash with lush synths and spectral vocals. With a backing like a warm embrace, instrumentation offering a helping hand and a mug of hot chocolate, Kahn’s voice walks a tightrope between delicate and vulnerable on one side and powerfully emotional on the other.
Confidently marrying the porcelain tones of the harp with synth textures so warmly analogue that they blend mesmerically into a sound so unnaturally natural that it’s almost impossible to look away, tracks like ‘Aquarium’ and ‘Horse’ subtly assimilate straight into your soul.
‘Never Good Enough’ takes the formula and runs with it, nudged along with a gently propulsive drum line, while on ‘Three’ Kahn kicks loose with a gutsy, slinky bassline that reveals an entirely different string to her bow (or harp), but the album’s high points come when things are at their smoothest, swelling softly into something spectacular.
Here’s hoping Outro is just the beginning for Kahn, because this is an artist with more to give and an intoxicating way of doing it.
Words - Joe Ponting