Kiri Variations
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| Kiri Variations | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Soundtrack album by | ||||
| Released | 26 July 2019 | |||
| Recorded | 2018–2019 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 44:31 | |||
| Label | Throttle Records | |||
| Producer | Clark | |||
| Clark chronology | ||||
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Kiri Variations is a studio album by British electronic musician Clark, released on 26 July 2019 on Throttle Records, his own label.[1] It is Clark's first full-length release on the label. The album is based on material from Clark's score for the Channel 4 and Hulu television drama Kiri (2018), reworked and expanded into a standalone record.[2]
Clark was commissioned to compose the score for Kiri, a four-part crime drama created by Jack Thorne and directed by Euros Lyn, starring Sarah Lancashire.[3] Director Lyn used only a small portion of the music Clark recorded for the series, employing it sparingly throughout the drama.[2] Clark subsequently reworked and expanded the unused material into a 14-track album, describing it as using the TV commission as "a prominent spark for new approaches".[2]
Clark described the album's character as "plaintive beauty, eerie wyrd arcadian horror and childlike outsider music", driven by piano, harpsichord, cello, viola, electronics and voice.[4] He likened the listening experience to reading "a set of Roald Dahl short stories; bittersweet tales with hooks and teeth and unexpected macabre twists".[2] The album incorporates field recordings made on a 20-year-old dictaphone, including birdsong captured while cycling along Sweden's coast.[5]
"Cannibal Homecoming" was released as the lead single alongside the album announcement and features Clark's own vocals prominently.[1] An animated music video for "Primary Pluck" was created by illustrator David Foldvari, who also designed the album artwork.[2]
Critical reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Loud and Quiet | 9/10[6] |
| Pitchfork | 5.8/10[7] |
| The Line of Best Fit | 9/10[8] |
Kiri Variations received positive reviews from specialist music press. The Line of Best Fit awarded 9 out of 10, calling it "courageous and quietly important".[8] Alex Francis of Loud and Quiet also gave it 9 out of 10, describing it as "one of the richest, most satisfying electronic records of the year so far".[6] Simon Tucker of Louder Than War called it "a fever dream of an album".[9] Freddie Hudson of Inverted Audio praised Clark's use of imperfection and silence.[10]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Forebode Pluck" | 3:29 |
| 2. | "Simple Homecoming Loop" | 2:24 |
| 3. | "Bench" | 3:17 |
| 4. | "Kiri's Glee" | 3:11 |
| 5. | "Coffin Knocker" | 1:32 |
| 6. | "Forebode Knocker" | 4:34 |
| 7. | "Yarraville Bird Phone" | 3:55 |
| 8. | "Primary Pluck" | 2:30 |
| 9. | "Flask / Abyss" | 3:22 |
| 10. | "Tobi Thwarted" | 3:21 |
| 11. | "Cannibal Homecoming" | 3:34 |
| 12. | "Banished Hymnal" | 2:52 |
| 13. | "Banished Cannibal" | 4:03 |
| 14. | "Goodnight Kiri" | 2:37 |
| Total length: | 44:31 | |
