King Ropes’ 6th full-length album, Idaho, is soaked in “The Spirit of The West.” Whatever that means. It’s not The West of tourism pamphlets, fly fishing, or cowboys riding into the sunset. Riffing on the idea of Idaho as a kind of misunderstood underdog, the band is more interested in evoking a world both remarkably gorgeous and harshly unforgiving. The band is carving out a sound for itself that reflects modern life in The American West — evoking the bewildering complexity and contradictions, the massive expanses, mythology and realities, mind-blowing beauty, and heartbreaking hardships. Boom and Bust. The Mountain West.
With a slight touch of soul and a hint of twang, King Ropes’ “Way Too High” is a spacey indie rock ballad that acts as a cloud-soft raft aimed directly at your heart. Pressing play on the band’s new single, a wave of relaxation washes over the listener. Relaxed yet melancholy guitars drive the instrumentation, while gentle vocals cascade the minimalistic arrangement moodily. While it is easy to get caught up in the lush vocal tones and get lost in the swaying guitar melodies, the lyrics of “Way Too High” paint a portrait of heartbreak. The lyrics play like an anonymous poem you stumble upon in an old book. A darkness surrounds the lyrics and is only cut through by the juxtaposing tones that deliver these words. An enticing sonic conflict is at the heart of King Ropes’s “Way Too High.” Conflicting emotions and tones battle it out on this moving single from a veteran band with a restless, creative spirit.
“Songwriting is a mysterious thing. At its best, it feels like a direct link between our conscious and unconscious minds. ‘Way Too High’ is one of those songs where I don’t have much of a handle on what it’s ‘about,’ but I’m happy to be along for the trippy, brooding ride of it all,” explains band member Dave Hollier. “I was messing around with this moody, dark progression on the guitar, and the words just started to reveal themselves… The band heard it in the studio and added some magic dust. Sometimes, they just fall into place like that.”
