k-os - Can't Fly Without Gravity (2015)

Can't Fly Without Gravity captures all of the different sides that make up k- os' musical DNA. It's an affirmation that "the forces which pull you down are simply put there to inspire you to rise above them" and promises to be a more stripped- down, holistic effort than its highly conceptual predecessor, 2012's double- LP opus Black on Blonde. However, the rock- vs. rap dialectic at that album's core still guides k- os on a more philosophical level: it's not just a question of reconciling disparate musical styles, but of differing workflow strategies. To be k- os in 2015 is to find the happy medium between hip- hop's penchant for rapid- fire releases and perpetual stylistic mutation with the more measured approach and timeless aspirations of rock 'n' roll artists—all while engineering his music for a post- EDM pop landscape that has not only changed listeners' tastes, but their very physiology. k- os's insightful approach to music making has proven he is an artist with boundless limits, and certainly not one that appeases to fluctuating mainstream trends, in which his 2005 Grammy Nomination can attest. Over the span of his career, k- os has gone twice platinum, toured with Drake, recorded with The Chemical Brothers and won multiple JUNO awards, plus is double- digits deep with other prestigious nominations. But that is nothing to how he has evolved with each new release.