Krrum
NAME: Krrum
GENRE: Indie / Electronic
SOUNDS LIKE: Moglii, ANIMA!, Chet Faker
LINKS: Spotify, Soundcloud, Website, Facebook
Although fairly new to the scene, Krrum deserves way more credit and attention than what they currently receive. The power duo behind the band first met at the Leeds College of Music just a few years ago. Both members were aspiring musicians individually but decided to combine their talents, with Harrison Warke as the songwriter and vocalist, and Alex Carrie as the producer and beard possessor (the beard is important).
Krrum only has a handful of tracks produced so far, but each one sounds like a hit. The Evil Twin EP was released late January 2016, and it was the single off that EP, "Evil Twin", that really launched Krrum into the spotlight. "Evil Twin" quickly became viral and started topping charts on platforms such as Spotify and Hype Machine. This was no surprise, for its hard hitting, reverberating synths and anthemic horns made it both catchy and danceable, two components that basically guarantee a song commercial success.
However, the rest of the Evil Twin EP and the three singles that followed did not garner nearly as much popularity. The lack of virality on the rest of Evil Twin might be due to the EP's overall experimental and trial-like nature, as it is Alex and Harrison's first official musical debut as Krrum. On the other hand, "Still Love", "Hard On You", and "Moon", seem undeservingly undiscovered. These are my real favorites by Krrum, all with soulful vocals, rhythmic beats, and the implementation of brass elements, which make up Krrum's signature sound.
Krrum's music is both appealing and unique, and as they grow as a band in the industry, they are definitely one to watch out for. Although they have been based in Leeds in the UK, they are slowly gaining more attention and are being given more opportunities to travel and play outside of their city. Recently, they appeared at Pitchfork Music Festival Paris, BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend, and The Great Escape Festival. In the future, you can expect to see them at festivals such as JoeFest and Bingley Live Music Festival.
Fun fact: when Krrum isn’t creating or playing their own music, they create bomb playlists, filled with their personal favorites and current listens. Check out their M00n cLUB playlists on Spotify here.
Read Tune-Jam's interview with Alex Carrie of Krrum below.
ANNA: I love learning about the backgrounds of artists, and what their lives were like before their musical careers. Who were you before Krrum? I heard that once upon a time, you were a butcher...
ALEX: Both Harrison and I have had relatively diverse backgrounds before Krrum. Harrison grew up in Bedford and worked in boots/was a life guard and I grew up in the peak district and worked in a butchers and as a tour guide in a cave. We both moved to Leeds to study music and met there, where we're still based. I had the pseudonym of Krrum for a while but it didn't really turn into what it is today until then.
A lot of your tracks, although seemingly upbeat, have darker tones weaved in. For example, 'Still Love' sounds like you're battling feelings that involve someone else, while 'Evil Twin' sounds like you're acknowledging some inner demons. Do you sing what you know? Are all of these emotions coming from real events and memories that have happened in your life?
You've read pretty well into the songs there to be fair! Still Love was specifically about pre-empting a break up knowing that the 'love' was dormant, hence 'still'. Evil Twin is about pretending the things you regret doing and the things about yourself you don't like are someone else as a coping mechanism. Ultimately, though, it's still you, so it's kind of a love song to ya-bad-self.
The songs tend to be about personal experiences and Harrison and I live together/know each other very well, so it's easy to write about these situations and also get interesting perspectives from the other that you might not have used in the song otherwise.
Speaking of 'Evil Twin,' this song has garnered a lot of popularity over the last year and a half. What's the deeper meaning behind this song? You say that "you're the only one who understands..." but after watching your music video (super dope by the way), I don't think anyone really understands.
Kinda covered the deeper meaning in the last bit but in terms of the music video I guess it's pretty abstract! It was Camille Summers-Valli's interpretation of the collage style artwork we used for the cover art by Matt De Jong. We work with these guys on everything and I kind of let them run free on it but I like that it's abstract and hard to draw meaning from because I think it lets the song speak for it's self a bit more. There's a lot of music videos that often change how you hear a song if they force a meaning or perspective down your throat.
The tracklists of your M00n cLUB playlists are seriously on point. You've got a pretty diverse lineup there, from Methyl Ethel and Her's, to Gorillaz and Kendrick. Krrum's sound is pretty unique, and I can tell that you guys pull inspiration from a variety of different sounds and genres. It makes me curious - if you could collaborate with any artist, who would it be?
Thank you, I'm glad you like them. It's a lot of what me and Harrison listen to throughout the month. Absolutely loving Her's at the moment.
I always say I'd love to collaborate with Justin Vernon of Bon Iver but I think collaborating with your favourite artist would be too much pressure. I'd love to write with HAIM, as I think the way they craft their vocal melodies is amazing. Also, Frank Ocean because dream big right?
It's amazing that you guys are appearing at so many festivals this year. Are there any pre-show rituals or inside jokes that you and the rest of the band have? Any secret handshakes we should know of?
Yeah, we're really happy with the festivals we're on this year because we thought we'd missed out. We have a few more that haven't been announced yet too (at the time of writing). We have plenty of inside jokes just like anyone but it's all absolute nonsense. I like to pat our keyboard player Thomas' shaved head for good luck.
Lastly, any future plans for Krrum that you're excited about?
Mainly excited for future gigs, and hopefully at the moment, as we've not played out of Leeds much until now. Also excited to finish our album, which will hopefully be soon.
Listen to the favorites:
1. Evil Twin
2. Still Love
3. Moon