By Charlie Maybee
Fairfax, Virginia based singer-songwriter and rapper, Khi Lo, gets retrospective with the second part of a three-part project titled Rosslyn II. Melding elements of pop, rap, and pop punk, this is an album that flows fluidly between rage, love, and depression. Where the previous installment focused on the here and now, this new collection of songs looks back on formative past experiences.
The transition between the first and second tracks (“heartbreak & hennessy” and “cherry memories”) will give you everything you need to understand about the span of genres that Khi Lo takes under his wing in Rosslyn II. It strikes a nice balance that is equal parts Machine Gun Kelly, RDGLDGRN, and Post Malone when it comes to influences. Some songs are steeped in electronic backbeats, while others pave the way with driving drums and guitar.
But it’s the gradual energetic crescendo of the album that stands out. By the time you reach the song “black hole”, it’s clear that this peek into the past is strictly a moment of moving past something – of making sure that lessons are learned fully. Anger rises to the top before finally cutting loose for a moment of fun and debauchery in “happily ever after”. A momentary return to the present that teases a shift in focus towards the future for the next installment.
Rosslyn II is available on major streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music. Find tracks from Rosslyn II and more new exciting music on our Alchemical Multigenre Mixdown Playlist on Spotify.
Charlie Maybee is a dancer, musician, educator, and writer based in Charleston, South Carolina who currently teaches with the Dance Program at the College of Charleston. His primary work as an artist is with his performing collective, Polymath Performance Project, through which he makes interdisciplinary performance art that centers tap dance as the primary medium of expression and research. He also currently plays rhythm guitar for the Charleston-based punk band, Anergy, and releases music as a solo artist under the name Nox Eterna.
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