Review by Ruth O’Brien
Kim’s clear tones hit you from the very first note she sings. Her voice reminds me of the timbre of Eva Cassidy mixed with the breathiness of Sarah McLachlan.
In a word, beautiful.
The opening, and title, track is about sinking in negative thoughts, with someone you love pulling you out of them. Starting off with simple guitar strums, and haunting humming, it’s captivating and emotive. Kim sings in the chorus, “I keep diving in the deep ocean of mind. You keep pulling me from the water undefined”. The underlying message of the song could appear to be quite dark. However, the resolve of a loved one reaching in to offer assistance and support makes it a song about loyalty, compassion, love, and hope.
The second track, Wake Me Up, has ‘big hit’ potential; it’s got the hook of many commercial pop successes. It ignites a story of lovers questioning if their love was ever real. This song has more instrumentation than the first, with piano and ukulele featuring prominently, continuing the melancholic tone. There’s a clear and strong pathos to this songwriter’s material.
The final song on the EP is about Kim’s experience of giving up music for a period of time after starring on a TV singing competition in Taiwan. A fan wrote to her to encourage her to not give up. This song, Missed Chance, is for that fan.
Kim has a quality to her voice that evokes deep emotion. Her songwriting and production are a great reminder that good songs are good songs. They don’t require effects, samples, layers upon layers of tracks in production. The essence of great songwriting is good lyrics and a good melody, both of which are present throughout this Canberra artist’s debut EP.
You can catch it on all major streaming services and can see Kim performing regularly around town.
Listen and support here! https://kimyangmusic.bandcamp.com/
