The K’s – Pretty On the Internet
After dropping their debut album, I Wonder If the World Knows?, in April 2024 to positive reviews, The K’s are certainly not resting on their laurels. That album debuted at number three on the UK official albums chart, and the indie-alt rock band has since sold out a UK-wide tour and performed at large UK festivals like Reading and Leeds. Now, only a year later, the Earlestown band have released their sophomore album, Pretty On the Internet. This new offering was produced by Jim Lowe (who has worked with Taylor Swift and Stereophonics) and mixed by Pete Hutchings (who has worked with Adele and Florence and the Machine).
The album kicks off with the energetic Before I Hit the Floor, featuring impressive drumming and a strong vocal performance. However, the music itself occasionally overpowers the vocals, making some of the lyrics a little inaudible. The second track, Rat Poison, is equally animated and boasts nice melodies and another strong vocal delivery. Breakdown In My Bedroom, the third song, addresses the struggles of maintaining positive mental health and the idea that being isolated indoors can feel safer than engaging with the outside world. While the lyrics are more audible here, there’s not much musical differentiation from the preceding tracks.
The record’s clear highlight is Helen, Oh, I, a poignant song about lost love and the struggle to erase a painful past. It features immaculate string arrangements at the start and sensational songwriting, drawing parallels to Helen of Troy – known for her beauty but also as an architect of chaos. The vocal performance throughout this track showcases effective uses of vibrato and melisma. With the exception of 33 Heads and Perfect Haunting, the album largely sticks to a familiar musical formula. However, Me and Your Sister stands out as an extremely vivid song about longing for someone, and Running Away Now is another relatable track, with frontman Jamie Boyle candidly singing about his mental wellbeing and the desire to escape his problems.
While the performances on Pretty On the Internet are largely impressive, the album, for the most part, feels musically stagnant and predictable, save for a few songs. Some tracks were well-written, but others lacked the creativity needed to offset the lack of musical variance. Despite this, The K’s should be proud of themselves for releasing a relatable album that will undoubtedly appeal to their dedicated fanbase.
Glory Matondo
Pretty On the Internet is released on 25th July 2025. For further information or to order the album, visit The K’s’s website here.
Watch the video for The Bends here:
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