Toss Up is the 2018 full-length debut of
Kevin Krauter, a singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist better known at the time of its release as bass player for
Hoops. The Bloomington, Indiana lo-fi outfit made waves in the indie blogosphere with their 2017 debut album
Routines, which landed on the Billboard Heatseekers chart. After releasing a couple of mostly acoustic,
Vashti Bunyan-influenced EPs in 2015 and 2016, solo
Krauter ramps up the arrangements and haze on
Toss Up. The album's dreamy, AM-radio veneer is much more reminiscent of his band, though lusher and more tranquil on average. Co-produced with
Ben Lumsdaine (
Spissy,
Mike Adams at His Honest Weight), arrangements and production as well as songwriting evoke '70s soft rock on tracks like the
Rundgren-esque ballad "Keep Falling in Love" and "Lonely Boogie," a song whose slushy chord progressions and dulcet keyboards echo over spare electronic drums. It also features
Krauter's typically calm, wistful vocal delivery. Quirky rhythms are also in play, beginning with the guitar intro on the album's opener, "Cowboy Chloe," though the rhythms float and meander more than intrude. The polyrhythmic "Who Do You Know" is the record's most uptempo number, with drums by
Lumsdaine and melodic, syncopated guitar by
Krauter. Like the rest of the songs, it's nevertheless pervaded by dreamy atmosphere, a trait that makes
Toss Up seem well-suited for its home at
Bayonet Records, a label co-run by
Beach Fossils'
Dustin Payseur.
Hoops enthusiasts will want to note that bandmember
Keagan Beresford contributes a guitar solo to the track "Barely on My Mind." ~ Marcy Donelson
