David Kay is an artist that encompasses the past, present and future of Experimental Pop. The German born singer, songwriter and musician blends the very best of raw vocals, unexpected chord changes and gorgeous, hypnotic melodies all in one pure package. Prepare to be enraptured and transformed by this musical experience. Kay’s latest album Rain on Me provides the perfect ethereal soundtrack for the lives of all its listeners.
review “rain on me”
It’s when you hear the wall of sparse sonic rhythms. Experience the emotionally tinged vocals and the unexpected chord changes of the syncopated rhythms. That’s when you know you’ve officially entered the boldly symphonic realm of David Kay.
Musically, Kay’s sound is the brainchild of artists like Kraftwerk and Gary Numan but only a songwriter and musician this pure and fearless would look for inspiration from an eclectic mix of artist spanning genres, time and space. “I’m inspired by songwriters, composers, and experimental musicians,” says the German-born Kay. “People like Miles Davis, Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich, or bands like Big Star and Radiohead, or songwriters like Elliott Smith and Chris Whitley. People or bands that defined or defied genres.”
Now, David Kay is picking up that musical tradition and showering this groundbreaking originality into the future. Kay’s latest album, Rain On Me is a gorgeous and lush sonic experience of techno keyboards, beautiful acoustic guitar work and personally raw and honest vocals.
Rain On Me is the complete David Kay experience.
Like solo musical expressionists and auteurs before him Kay, not only played all the instruments featured on the album, he also served as the solo singer and songwriter of all seven songs featured on the EP.
“I want an audience to be able to connect to the lyrics and the music in a way that leaves room for their own interpretation. I am not transporting a certain message with my songs. They are like poems or short stories, which hopefully inspire the listeners to create their own images or associations,” says Kay. “In the best case the songs have a life of their own, and can be explored more in depth by the listeners over time.”
And Rain On Me is the perfect soundtrack to transcend listeners on the journey of their lives. Songs like, “All Around” explore the inability of those in power to understand our human connections and love. “One Way Street” ponders the difficulties with dealing with emotional aspects of life, relationships that have gone sour and finding peace with those issues. “Rain On Me” is musical exercise in cleansing. It’s about washing away distorted views of others to embrace hope for new beginnings.
“I am really excited and happy about the way Rain On Me sounds and how the whole thing came together,” says Kay. “I tapped into entirely new areas of music, which I never explored before: extensive synth experimentation, drum computer and virtual instruments. During the creative process these songs just developed very organically, totally transformed while recording and then took on many new directions.”
It’s direction that takes audiences on a musical journey into territories unknown. They are all personal sojourns, specific and personal for each listener. But Rain On Me is the vehicle for one resounding experience for all song devotees. The album provides sounds that dig deep into your soul to make your heart feel, that make your spirit ascend and frees your mind in the wanderlust of poetic lyrics. It’s time—let Rain On Me rain upon you.