SONG REVIEW: Kep1er – We Fresh

You know, looking back at Kep1er’s discography so far, it actually isn’t too bad. Debut effort Wa Da Da initially polarised but soon grew into a pretty catchy listen while followup Up! impressed with its bright summery energy and great chorus. And while the singles were nice, b-sides like MVSK and Attention also shone some more light on the groups various talents. Now we have We Fresh, a song that might just be one of the years most frustrating listens.

One of the things about Kep1er that I’ve always maintained is that their songs are very inconsistent. You’ll have some incredibly promising segments that build towards potential greatness only to then be undercut by a collection of underwhelming choices. And I don’t think any other song is a better example of that than We Fresh. For around 75% of the track, We Fresh is an absolute blast, pulsing forward on an invigorating guitar driven backbone that feels incredibly satisfying. The short but sweet pre-chorus is even better, bounding forward on a more melodic sound that injects some real “life” into the build when compared to the more shouty delivery favoured during the rest of the verses. Similarly, the extended dance break is an absolute delight, bringing the guitars into full focus and just letting rip with no intention of holding back. The vocal affections could have been toned down and the performance could have been a little more streamlined but the effort was there. All it needed was an equally engrossing centrepiece to really seal the deal and we could have easily had a 2022 highlight.

But for some godforsaken reason, instead of even getting a serviceable chorus, we get one of the years most grating and wholly confusing hooks in its place. Rather than continuing the excellent rock based production of the rest of the track, We Fresh collapses into an ear bleeding shout that goes from terrible sing-song melody to an even worse instrumental breakdown. It’s one of the years most baffling decisions, one made even worse given that we’re previewed a potentially much superior melody during the post-chorus. It sinks an otherwise pretty solid track, a common thread I’ve noticed in many releases throughout the year. But even considering those other tracks, few switch-ups have been as offensive as this. I’m not even mad at this point, just disappointed.

Verses: 9

Chorus: 6

Production: 8

Performance: 7

Final Rating: 7.5 / 10