Benji – Sun Kil Moon

Year	Album	Artist	Stars	Score	Genre
2014	Benji	Sun Kil Moon	★★★★	86	Rock	Singer-Songwriter	Indie Folk

On Benji, Sun Kil Moon reflects on his past with highly-personalized story telling that contemplates much of the second-hand trauma he’s witnessed his family, friends and community suffer through. He tells the stories of those who tragically died too young and left families behind. He speaks of various crimes and their macro and micro implications. He talks about sex, and love, and heartbreak. He remembers his father, and points out some of his flaws while also sharing the valuable lessons and experiences and love that he felt through his youth. And throughout the stories, he references the albums, songs and experiences of his youth that shaped him as a musician and a person.  

This is a lyric-driven record, and Sun Kil Moon’s stories are consistently captivating. Even if his often conversational vocals lack traditional melodic movement, his cadence, his dynamics and those scattered melodic builds so beautifully convey his emotions and words. Musically, the album features looping acoustic guitar melodies, who’s reverberating echo mixes with soft backing vocals and production elements to create simple but breathtaking settings.