Small statement, big expectations

Small statement, big expectations

Album: ”Just Once” EP
Artist: How to Dress Well

How to Dress Well, the stage name of Tom Krell, originated with a series of EPs released on his blog.
It has since spawned an excellent full-length album. Now Krell returns with “Just Once,” a four-track EP.
Although it doesn’t approach the scope of the previous album, “Just Once” finds Krell experimenting with new instrumentation..
The previous full-length, “Love Remains,” was lo-fi to the extreme.
The songs were filled with digital clippings and fuzz.
I have a feeling this ultra-messy approach was a choice not out of necessity.
However, it didn’t obscure Krell’s haunting voice or the unabashed romanticism of the songs.
On “Just Once,” Krell has subtracted much of the meat from the album. Now the songs are filled with piano and string quartets.
The addition of the quartet in particular is a gutsy move. It would have been so easy for the strings to have sounded silly and syrupy; but instead, they lie along a lower, darker register.
It sounds considerably mature and not at all like any top-40 radio ballad.
The first three tracks are all called “Suicide Dream,” although they have little in common.
Two of the versions have previously been released, and one is a new addition.
The final track, “Decisions,” brings back some of the beats that used to be absent.
It sounds like they were created with an actual drum, although it’s too lo-fi to really tell.
The “Suicide Dream” tracks serve as a somewhat morose opener, but “Decisions” closes the EP out on a hopeful note.
“Just Once” is a relatively small statement from How to Dress Well.
However, it shows the project evolving beyond its original sound.
It’ll be interesting to see whether Krell ultimately cleans up his sound or if he sticks with what he knows.