If you push through the sea of buildings, concrete, and hustle-bustle lifestyle that make up the New York City landscape, you will find many organic gems to make the blood inside your veins warm and comfortable. In the borough of Brooklyn there are two individuals who work together in life, love and music, to give us their beautiful, pure visions of music. Courtney Kaiser and Benjamin Cartel of Kaiser Cartel have mastered the art of touching souls through music as few, with as little as a guitar, voice and simple drum, have accomplished before. Since the debut release of March Forth in 2005, they have delivered a raw sense of perfection through numerous songs, performances and EP’s. Now, their gifts are again captured for all the world to hear. Five songs which, as I’ve read, were quickly recorded to quarter inch tape after a long road journey. These songs became their next short but soulful masterpiece, The Rock Island EP, which takes your heart prisoner at every listen.
“Carroll Street Station” starts the recording with a wonderfully simplistic and hooky shuffle with great spirit and harmonies. The depth, texture and warmth of this recording remind me of the wonderful songs of days passed when a needle-touching-vinyl created magic. A raw, bouncy tune with the grit and emotion of a classic Nashville 45RPM record, they start the EP off in the right direction. The heartwarmingly sad and melancholy “Stella” was written about their relationship with a friend’s family, especially their young daughter. “And you know I’m gonna leave the light on…just in case you come back late” brings a tear to my eye each time I hear the line. The lazy grit of every strum makes you picture the tenderness of every moment they felt with those children and that family. A warm water color painted with strokes of loving vocal and guitar. A sweet and perfect tribute to family memories was never documented so kindly. The brilliant cover of Lucinda Williams' "Something About What Happens When We Talk," is soft, sad and staggering. The combination of voices is brilliant in this tune with an overall mood of beauty and love. The line “the only regret is that I never kissed your mouth” is delivered by Kaiser with such desperation, Williams herself would cry for Courtney’s own heartache.
The tone and texture of “Memphis” is reminiscent of older traditional classics. It’s Mr Bojangles-quality comes through in it’s underlying swing. It’s another beauty which adds a different level of depth and warmth to this record. It will go on to be a classic for them in the future. The layers they create with their voices are heavenly and charming. The release ends with “Shira”, a less spirited song driven by the vocals of Benjamin Cartel. His voice is less enriching as Kaiser’s purity and emotion, but he holds steady and keeps his individuality above all things. The song is less infectious as the others, but it’s authentic, heartfelt emotions weep openly to the listener, which makes it and their other compositions consistently masterful. The pure vocal compatibility of Kaiser Cartel is a gift that we only hear rarely. When two can vocalize, compliment each other’s subtle inflections, and feed off their companions’s emotional texture, we are witnessing something higher than ourselves. A recording such as this should be held to the light to exhibit the brilliance of music captured in a pure form. There is no doubt that the genius of song is alive in Brooklyn. Thank you for sharing your gifts and soul with us.
"Rock Island EP" is on sale September 22, 2009 from MRI.
