“Not What You Want It To Be” is the latest release by Kind of Like Paris, a one man musical project of a musician who goes by the name of Nolan in Lansing, MI.
In a sharp contrast with the individual effort in creating the EP, it was issued by a collaboration of different labels:
- Useless Plastic Toys, KOLP’s own label.
- Rok Lok Records.
- Friendly Otter.
- Les Disques Rabat-joie.
- Rival Mist Distro.
The EP was recorded using analog equipment, mainly the legendary TASCAM Portastudio 244, the tape hiss, flat sounding drums and fuzzy guitar sound give the record the aura of an unearthed lo-fi and slowcore relic from the early 90’s.
Musically, the EP is very consistent in its simplicity, each song in introduced by a 1-2-3-4 hit from a closed hi-hat or snare, followed with unassuming guitar lines and chords with not a single solo in sight, setting the stage for Nolan’s songs about alienation, despair and apathy.
The opening track, “Coping” provides us a gloomy glimpse of the writer’s mind:
…Rub some dirt on that wound
It doesn’t help my head
I’ll always be in this mood
A constant state of sad…
My Highlight is the 2nd track, “Pardon”, which portrays the writer’s desperate struggle with love-shyness and loneliness.
…It’s so silly to ask
But I just need to know
I’ve been through so much
I need to be told…
The EP is a stark reminder of the painful times many of us go through in our lives, the main thing that I took from this record is the feeling that no matter how low can our lives get, there’s always someone, anywhere in this world, who will listen, and understand.
Qneydl 