Spectreview: Kings of Convenience – Peace Or Love

Released: June 18, 2021

Indie Folk
(Indie Pop)

-RED-

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“Love is pain and suffering, love can bе a lonely thing
Once you’ve known that magic, who can livе without it?”

And so, as if waking from a decade-long slumber, Erlend Øye and Eirik Glambek Bøe are back to wax mild about the inner workings of humanity. Peace Or Love doesn’t deviate much at all from the breezy guitar interplay and featherweight vocal harmonies that made Riot on an Empty Street and Declaration of Dependence weirdly compelling listens, and that’s a mostly good thing. Back then it was easy to discount the duo’s approach because the market was saturated with similar acts; now that the clamor has settled and they’ve established their first two records as gentle little bougie oases of 2000’s-era indie folk, it feels almost nostalgic to come back to something so blessedly comforting.

It helps that the pair’s adept songwriting skills are on full display, with a lightness that overtakes the leaden search for profundity that dragged down their last record. Even the slower, simpler numbers have something compelling driving them forward, whether its the warm golden rays of a descending arpeggiation (“Ask For Help”) or Leslie Feist’s instantly-recognizable tambour (“Love Is A Lonely Thing,” one of Feist’s two guest spots on the record). The best cuts – early single “Rocky Trail” and the percussion-graced “Fever” among them – are as good as they’ve ever been, although besides the production work (which is overall less dark than its predecessor) you’d again be confused for material an earlier record. What’s ultimately important is that Peace Or Love is as consistent as Kings of Convenience have ever been, and as a mood listen for a tempoary sojourn it’s a strong choice.

Recommended for a hammock.