King Krule – ‘Easy Easy’
Despite cutting a frail, paper-thin, pale exterior, you get the impression that Archy Marshall – better known to you and me as King Krule – is one young lad you wouldn’t want to fuck with.
In Easy Easy, Marshall takes us on a trip around London’s streets, meandering across rooftops with his young mate, cutting the expression of a misunderstood tearaway contemplating thoughts far greater than the misguided contemporary stereotype portrays.
Dressed in what looks like his dad’s old suit, Marshall isn’t afraid to tell you exactly what he thinks: “Man I’m sure I told you so,” he begins. “And with your dead-end job, that’s been eating away your life, you feel a little inside, the trouble and the strife, and now you spend your evenings searching for a better life”.
Lyrically, ‘Easy Easy’ strikes at the heart of urban ennui and the struggle to navigate a world steeped in complexity. Marshall’s poetic observations paint a picture of mundane routines and the yearning for something more, all set against a backdrop of urban decay and desolation. Lines like “All I see’s a city gone to ruins / There is no guiding light coming from the sky / Stars are out tonight / Only they can blind me” exemplify his ability to craft poignant imagery, inviting listeners to peer into his world of darkened alleyways and emotional unrest.
You can see, just by watching him that Archy Marshall doesn’t give a shit about what anybody things of him, telling the tales of misspent youth that most of us can relate to in some way or another.
The song’s instrumentation is equally captivating. Subdued drums and bass interplay lay down a steady foundation while dissonant saxophone flourishes punctuate the atmosphere with a sense of disarray. The production, characterised by its lo-fi charm, lends an air of intimacy, as if the listener has stumbled upon a hidden musical artefact in a dusty basement.
The voice seperates King Krule from anything you’ll listen to today, his whole aura of placed aggression through forcing his poetic lyrics that sometimes even come out slurred so full of emotion.
In an era of cookie-cutter pop and polished production, ‘Easy Easy’ stands as a testament to King Krule’s artistic integrity and willingness to embrace the raw edges of emotion. It’s a song that demands to be experienced, not just heard—a stark reminder of the power of music to capture the essence of the human experience in all its gritty, beautiful glory. As the closing notes fade into the ether, one is left with the lingering feeling that they’ve encountered something truly extraordinary.
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