Anyone who first discovered Kimbra in Gotye’s
2011 smash hit “Somebody That I Used to Know”
and went to find out more about the singer from
New Zealand were probably surprised by her solo
work. Depending on the listener’s expectations,
he or she would likely have been either put off by
the quirky, nontraditional musical techniques or
enamored by her creativity and obviously massive
skill in songwriting and production. What we have
all come to realize about Kimbra, first from her
2011 debut solo album Vows and now with the follow up The Golden Echo, is that aside from having
immense vocal abilities, she consistently maintains
her originality and avoids clichés that have sterilized mainstream pop music in recent years.
Even in her brief guest spot in Gotye’s hit it was
clear that Kimbra was exhibiting a certain level of
restraint. While Gotye appeared entirely comfortable portraying a controlled level of emotion,
Kimbra seemed ready to burst by the end of the
track. With The Golden Echo, her ideas are let loose
and allowed to breath without limitation. One gets
the feeling that the album is only a sliver of her creative output and that she may be sitting on much
more material, ݡ