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We’ve seen him on TV. We’ve heard him on the radio. We’ve watched him accept three Juno Awards, four MuchMusic Awards, six Canadian Urban Music Awards, a Source Award, garner a Grammy nomination, perform hit singles and reach platinum-plus status with Joyful Rebellion and the Publicity Stunt DVD. And while these accomplishments brought k-os great pride, he hopes that with his new album ATLANTIS – Hymns for Disco, people can focus on the music rather than the accolades.
It all began with the first song he wrote for the new album, the uplifting “Sunday Morning.” k-os had been reflecting back on his life in the spotlight and questioning the association between personal validation and public acceptance. “After the last record, I would be walking down the street and people would come up to me as if they knew me. And it felt good to be popular, I guess,” k-os confides.
Creating this song opened his eyes and brought him back to the lifestyle and values he learnt during his fundamentalist upbringing. “If Saturday night was party night, Sunday morning was family time in my house – from the morning activities to the dinner served,” he says. “It’s funny I left all that behind to see what the world was like on my own terms. Everything then was go-go-go! I felt so ambitious with so much to accomplish, only to now understand the sacredness of resting and having time to contemplate and renew yourself.” He continues: “Making this song has changed my life. It really works to embrace and be aware of what troubles us. This is the theme of ATLANTIS.”
“The Rain” is a painfully sincere song on which k-os sings with a new sense of honesty and rawness. There are no samples, no rap, no musical mixtures and concoctions; he keeps it pure, simple and real from beginning to end. “I was surprised by how well I could emote fresh cuts from a situation in the past where I was ruled by a woman,” he admits. “I really thought I was over it. But emotions build up inside and if these remain unattended, they only build up further. ‘The Rain’ is the storm of those unchecked emotions.”
The fourteen tracks on ATLANTIS – Hymns for Disco delve into many different directions, but are tied by themes of veracity, forgiveness and self-awareness. For this extremely personal album, it only made sense for
k-os to collaborate with a few of his trusted friends. Both Sam Roberts and Kevin Drew (Broken Social Scene) make a welcome appearance on “Valhalla.” WhileBuck 65 and Kamau (who has appeared on all three albums) help close the album with the stirring opus, “Ballad of Noah,” which shows that
k-os stands for ‘knowledge of self’ and on this new album he has not only identified a path to ‘knowledge of self,’ but brings us on that never-ending journey.
Visit K-Os official website here.
