Elevate Difference

Phratry EP

Most people can’t play an instrument, but Lauren K. Newman (also known as LKN) can play at least five. And she plays them all on the same album. This one-woman band has released her fourth album through Greyday Productions. Her most recent, Postulate II, was also reissued on vinyl by Phratry Records complete with a bonus eight track EP to the first two-hundred lucky buyers.

LKN stays true to her punk roots on Phratry EP by reflecting the sounds of her four previous albums. The popular music scene always seem to be lacking in strong women that rock as hard as boy bands do. LKN chalks-up a point for the ladies’ because her self-made hardcore music is experimental and edgy. Highlights include the piano dominated final track appropriately titled “Piano” as well as the more feedback heavy “Premonition,” which is worthy to be on the list of the selections for the first edition of Guitar Heroine if it ever comes out.

However, LKN still has some room to grow. Luckily, what she lacks in scope she makes up for with talent and ambition. A quick search for her on the internet yields a lot of information and reviews about her. This is a good sign that she’s hungry and putting herself out there as much as possible. She gives concerts frequently and when she takes the stage, she calls herself LKN and dubs her playing as both solo and with accompaniment. Let’s hope her progress is as aggressive as her sound.

Written by: Sara Custer, April 15th 2009