{"id":42765,"date":"2018-11-15T15:05:32","date_gmt":"2018-11-15T15:05:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/?p=42765"},"modified":"2018-11-15T15:05:32","modified_gmt":"2018-11-15T15:05:32","slug":"kazyak-belmonte","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/essentiallypop.com\/epop\/2018\/11\/kazyak-belmonte\/","title":{"rendered":"Kazyak – ‘Belmonte’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Kazyak are an alternative folk band from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Their latest track, ‘Belmonte’, is taken from their new album, ‘Reflection’, and features an experimental video shot in a graveyard.<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Comprising Peter Frey, songwriter and guitarist, Andy Wolfe on guitar, Pat Hayes on synths and piano, Lana Bolin on bass, and Nick Grewe on drums, Kazyak seem to be a group who like to think outside the box. The surreal clip for ‘Belmonte’ is entirely in keeping with the laidback nature of the track itself, it’s quite jarring and disturbing at times, but that’s part of its beauty.<\/p>\n

Speaking about the album, Peter Frey makes it clear that ‘Belmonte’ with its sepia tones and kaleidoscopes is the rule, not the exception:<\/p>\n

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(Reflection was) \u201cAn attempt to create surreal, vivid, Dali-esque images with our sound – it\u2019s a collection of outtakes, demos, and b-sides consistent with our history of not-trying-to-be-mainstream alternative rock. They\u2019re all true songs of scenery seen, dreams dreamt, and feelings felt, enlivened by layers of musical and visual, psychefied experimentation.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The album is inspired by a trip Frey took with his wife to Chile and Argentina, and the footage of the videos from the album were shot mainly in the Atacama desert, in Northern Chile. The song, ‘Belmonte’, is flamenco in style, and focuses on the story of a bull-fighter, who is too damaged to continue fighting. Instrumentally it’s drawn out and languid, with a psychedelic vibe to it, alongside Spanish-style guitars. The colours and shooting style of the clip therefore work perfectly well with the track.<\/p>\n

‘Reflection’ follows on from Kazyak’s first release, the EP ‘See The Forest’, released in 2015, and a further EP, ‘Happy Camping’, in 2017.<\/p>\n

‘Reflection’ is available from Bandcamp<\/a>. You can find out more about Kazyak online on their official website<\/a>, Twitter<\/a>, Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, SoundCloud<\/a>, and YouTube<\/a>.<\/p>\n