Calling your album 'Basement Kids' seems a very apt choice for this new act from Michigan, The Kinetic Stereokids. The record initially has an aura of wonkily-recorded music by a group of teenagers with a head full of ideas. Yet, as is often the case, there's a lot more going on.
'Red Star' sashays between folky guitar and odd samples, 'Low Blood Sugar' engages with inventive rapping, a spooky melody, odd samples of flute and possibly a barking dog. They're both fine songs though, which are inescapably reminiscent of early Beck records. Yet the real killer occurs at the centre of the record as the young men's misery-tinged harmonies are matched up with a lush melody; the fact that this oddly beautiful track is called 'Donuts Are Here', though, probably suggests they are comfortable with being a respected act who fall under the commercial radar. There are a few tracks here, which are a case of too many ideas at the expense of a hook but otherwise these particular basement kids deserve a place much higher than their current humble dwellings indicate.