So there’s this band called Kenna (named after the singer) and they have a bit of an odd story. Part of Kenna’s story is featured in Malcom Gladwell’s book Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking (2005). Gladwell talks about how Kenna’s first album, New Sacred Cow (2003), impressed many “music experts” so much that they thought it would be a huge success, but it flopped with the public.

Now Kenna has a new album, Make Sure They See My Face (2007). Pitchfork gave the first album a 5.5 (out of 10) and has now given the second album a 6.4 (out of 10). But, Pitchfork is pretty specific in their tastes and can be harsh sometimes. But what do the rest of the critics say? Well, it’s a bit mixed. Metacritic (which tries to collect all the reviews out there and report the overall view) says the overall score from critics is about 73 (out of 100). That’s not a bad score, I suppose. But, the album just came out in about October of 2007, so it remains to be seen how it will really fair with the public.

I must admit, I think the Kenna situation is puzzling. I dig most of Kenna’s stuff, even the first album. Maybe I’m just a music expert, then :^) . It’s an interesting mix of various styles. On both albums there is rock (including sounds reminiscent of U2 and Bloc Party), hip hop, R&B, soul, funk, dance, electronica, and so on. The sound is fun, but also has some musically serious moments. Perhaps this mixture is what hangs people up. I’ll admit, it’s not amazing music and perhaps has more potential, but if you take it for what it is, I think it’s quite good. I think the score should be more in the 8.0 (out of 10) range.

Whatever the outcome of this second album, I think it’s pretty good.

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