Staff Reviews

Alex Winston - King Con

Review by Amanda Farah

Unlike artists who rely on personal experiences for their material, there are enough oddities in the world to supply Alex Winston for many albums to come.»

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an exhilarating collection of songs, the album title reflects the multi-instrumentalist's innate fascination in the pretenders of the world: everyday con-men, cult leaders and sham preachers.
originally from detroit, most of the songs on alex's debut lp are inspired by books and documentaries about marginal subcultures in america, with the resulting record almost acting as a musical adaptation of the works of errol morris and louis theroux. 'king con' - the suggestion that an elvis impersonator is the ultimate con - came to alex after spending several months in an elvis costume herself whilst promoting her recent single 'velvet elvis'. 'velvet elvis' itself is inspired by objectum sexuality and the documentary 'i married the eiffel tower'. alex's previous releases, including an acclaimed mini-album, were recorded on garageband and 'king con' sees her take a step up in terms of production, working with the likes of charlie hugall (florence and the machine, ed sheeran, crystal fighters), bjorn yttling (lykke li) and the knocks. winston sings in the international language of pure joy, producing a giddy, heart-stopping sound. however, beneath that sixties pop-tinged soul exuberance lie hidden depths. on 'benny', a poignant warning of benny hinn - a preacher whose healing powers seem to be in proportion to church donations - alex sings "benny benny / takes my penny / then he skins me to the bone". not wanting to deride the subjects of these stories though, alex translates them to everyday situations. in 'run rumspringa', she applies rumspringa - the condoned acts of adolescence rebellion in the amish church - to a relationship. 'sister wife', inspired by polygamy, is about not wanting to share something you love. traces of her motown influences can be seen on '8king con' and it is full of alex's signature melodies, from the stunning, propulsive percussion on 'shock me' to the eerie harmonies of 'fire ant' and the soaring chorus of 'choice notes'.
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