The full-length follow-up to her 2011 debut EP
Sister Wife, 2012's
King Con features more of singer/songwriter
Alex Winston's buoyant, technicolor psych and folk-influenced pop. A opera-trained vocalist, the Michigan-born
Winston came off as a kind of cherubic indie rock
Kate Bush on
Sister Wife, and
King Con does nothing if not reinforce this notion. These are meticulously crafted, gargantuanly melodic songs that frame
Winston's fairy siren of a voice with swirling, sparkling productions (via
the Knocks) rife with bells and keyboards, shimmering guitar bits, and veritable marching bands of rhythm. While a few tracks carry over from
Sister Wife, including the title track, the '60s girl group-sounding "Choice Notes," and the yearning "Locomotive," listeners also get more than few hummable, immediately catchy numbers like the swoony "Velvet Elvis" and the wide-eyed and cinematic "Medicine." While the album title suggests that
Winston's talents may be less than genuine,
King Con is never anything less than truly inspired. ~ Matt Collar