Maltese has provided us with yet another album filled with soundtracks of love and heartbreak.
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10
Following the releases of a few singles from this album, including ‘Rom-Com Gone Wrong‘ and ‘Curl Up & Die’, it was clear to many Matt Maltese fans that we were in for a treat with the release of Krystal. Now with Maltese’s sophomore album out worldwide, I can confirm that we certainly were treated to an immaculate masterpiece, made up of nostalgic tunes which truly showcase some gorgeous vocal harmonies and melodies.
Krystal is fairly dissimilar to Bad Contestant (2018), Maltese’s debut album. Where his first album brought us the sweetest, funkiest tunes ranging from the upbeat ‘Sweet 16’ to the beautifully depressing ‘Less and Less’, Krystal seems to convey the return of Matt to his musical roots, with every song made up of variations of soft, dulled tones and beautifully crafted harmonies in a somewhat choral style.
‘Tokyo’ is probably the most reminiscent of tunes like ‘Sweet 16’ and ‘Like A Fish’ off the previous record, as it seems to be one of the most upbeat songs featuring on Krystal. I adore the little musical interlude tune between the vocals, which is catchy and actually quite sweet.
Maltese’s single ‘Even If It’s a Lie’ (2015) was one which generated much attention towards him as a singer/songwriter, and could be said to be the start of his ever-increasing fame. It’s clear Maltese wishes to remain near to his roots, as ‘When You Wash Your Hair’ is definitely reminiscent of the single from 4 years ago, maintaining similar addictive piano melodies and emotive melodic build-ups.
It’s worth noting the somewhat experimental aspects of this album which have not been seen in any of Maltese’s previous musical releases, particularly the unique musical tune heard at the start of ‘Jupiter’, which calls to mind a spaceship-like theme (proving the song title to be extremely well-named…). This spaceship-like theme then transforms into a love song, and although it’s easy to get wrapped up in the beautiful musical aspects and look past the lyrics in a song which is so musically impressive, Maltese’s lyrics are 100% worth paying attention to. In the gorgeous melodies, perhaps the lyric ‘I’d even be an ulcer in your mouth’ is unnoticed… (it’s certainly a lyric worth remembering for any future love endeavours).
It was fairly difficult to locate a favourite track of mine from the album, but I think the title track ‘Krystal’ deserves everyone’s upmost attention. With the returning lyric ‘I forget if I ever loved anyone else’ permeating throughout its entirety, the perfect balance between love and heartbreak is created, which is probably the most accurate depiction of most of Maltese’s songs.
It’s probably time to wrap up this review before I inevitably bash on about how wonderful every single song of Matt’s is. The only flaw I could find in this album is the fact it consists of just 10 songs…I am already so excited for any of Maltese’s upcoming releases. Krystal is the perfect album to add to the winter playlist, consisting of the ideal soundtracks to listen to whilst you escape from the cold.
Matt Maltese’s Kystal is out now via Tonight Matthew, sevenfoursevensix.
