Little Kid — Transfiguration Highway (7/3/20)

Toronto-native Kenny Boothby has been releasing music as Little Kid since 2011. He now has a full band with him and this marks their first album under a label, having signed with Solitaire Recordings out of Brooklyn.

I just heard about them this year (I worked with Kenny’s sister!) and, upon listening, it became quickly apparent that this band has the chops to make a name for themselves in the indie scene.

“Thief on the Cross” is the album’s lead single and it was my first taste of the band. Instrumentally, the mood they set up in the first 10 seconds makes for one of my favourite musical feelings of the year. Boothby’s charmingly light vocals are also pretty unique to me, with this almost nasally delivery that I wouldn’t confuse with any other band.

They play with some Christian ideology on at least a few of the album’s songs. In the New Testament, the Thief on the Cross (The Penitent Thief) asks Jesus to remember him when he arrives at his kingdom. With the song, Little Kid is basically interweaving their experience as an on-the-rise opening act within the story of the thief…or maybe it’s the other way around.

However you take it, it’s a witty lyrical concept. The song itself is a contender for best verses of the year with this excitingly fresh guitar riff (I think it’s a banjo) that, as mentioned, creates this amazing feeling. The chorus is lovely but they remove that sweet riff and the song does lose a bit of steam for me. Also, the haphazard piano outro makes for a messy conclusion that encourages me to end the song early.

Another favourite comes with the opener “I Thought That You’d Been Raptured.” Again, in the title alone, you can see the Christian ideology.

It’s another witty lyrical venture from Boothby who describes the story of a man returning home early from work to find his wife’s dress lying in the doorway, only to think that she’s been raptured. This leads him to wonder why he was left on Earth before he comes to the realization that his wife is actually in bed with another man.

It’s one of the most entertaining little stories I’ve heard in a song this year. I can’t think of another artist from this year that’s been able to tell such a memorable story through their music. While the euphoric verses of “Thief on the Cross” are the peak of feeling on this album for me, I’d say this opening track will ultimately go down as the stronger of the two.

“What’s in a Name” is another highlight with this looping piano-led melody and a soft and cute chorus that is super infectious. I say cute because Boothby has such a light and almost childish sound to his voice that I do find adds this “cuteness” to their sound.

The title track is one of the more subdued arrangements and its slow delivery allows more time for some of the thoughtful lyrics to seep in. The title “Transfiguration Highway” to me is like the highway of life that as we travel and change, it changes with us. Again, it has a bit of a religious context to it with the whole Transfiguration thing, but I find myself just thinking about how life is forever evolving.

You get a beautiful duet on “All Night (Golden Ring).” Fellow band member Megan Lunn splits vocal duties with Boothby for a slow-riding country love song complete with harmonica and organ.

The following “Candle Out” acts a beautiful and gentle 90-second interlude. The lyrics about “lingering til you flicker out” and “picturing your peeling house” hint at something a little more drastic though.

“Made for Each Other” gives Megan Lunn the lead on vocals for a hymnal sounding piece that has a bit of a foreboding tone to it. More Christian reference comes in with the mention of the lord reaching down to take a bone from your only summer home, whatever that means.

Songs like this and the following “Close Enough to Kill” (my least favourite) along with the instrumental “Gill” and the near-8-minute closer “Pry” make the album’s second half a bit more of an undertaking than the first.

I will say though, despite the extra 3 minutes of fading keys they attach to “Pry,” it’s actually a beautiful song that gets about the most gentle performance from Boothby and is wonderfully endearing.

And amongst some of the looser tracks in the album’s second half, we get arguably the most accessible song of the bunch with “Losing.” The light and perky melody is one of the album’s fullest and it also holds some of the most grounded lyrics.

“Never much for playing but you’ve always had a way with losing,” Boothby sings of this unfortunate character that can’t seem to get it right.

It’s this playful way of poking at the different subjects on this album that is so charming about Little Kid. Kenny Boothby is quite the creative songwriter and this album brings some unique stories to folk music, establishing Little Kid as a band to watch out for in the Canadian indie scene.