Kitchen Dwellers Release New 3-song “The Katabatic EP”: REVIEW

Kitchen Dwellers‘ “The Katabatic EP”, featuring Eric “Benny” Bloom on trumpet, is available on all streaming platforms.  LISTEN

A katabatic wind (named from Ancient Greek κατάβασις (katábasis) ‘descent’) is a downslope wind caused by the flow of an elevated, high-density air mass into a lower-density air mass below the force of gravity.

We’ve seen the Kitchen Dwellers affect the weather before.

A memorable “Seven Devils” on the beach in Mexico comes to mind, with a burst of rain that could not have been timed better if the Universe had been checking its watch.

But today’s release of “The Katabatic EP” is taking these powers to another level.

“The Katabatic EP” is a brand new selection of 3 tunes, “Katabatic”, “Madison,” and “Mimas and Ida,” with Eric “Benny” Bloom of funk outfit Lettuce laying down trumpet on the bookend instrumental tunes.

I, like many in Boulder and the Front Range of Colorado, am listening to the new offering through my portable bluetooth speakers. The power has been out since the early morning as a preventative measure due to the hurricane-force winds that are flooding the foothills, flowing off the Rockies and into the plains.

Much like the winds of the same name, “The Katabatic EP” begins with great force, emerging as cool and crisp before gaining density. The first tune, “Katabatic,” is a journey that feels like a step into The Dark Side of the Rainbow, taking the listener on a thrill ride, not quite landing us safely on our feet. The ensuing “Madison” provides a brief breath of safety, as the lone lyric tune on the EP tells the story of an angler on the Madison River. One can only imagine the angler’s distressed looks toward the darkening skies between casts. “Mimas and Ida” continues the journey, with Bloom’s trumpet assisting in taking the momentum beyond the colossal winds of this stratosphere, upward and beyond into the ether.

Recorded in 2021, the EP is inspired by Montana winters, but the relevance to the current weather – as I see tree limbs tremble outside my window, leaves, debris and banjo notes flying by at breakneck speed – is notably serendipitous.

Atmospheric phenomena aside, “The Katabatic EP” is an amazing addition to the already inspiring catalogue of this incredible boundary-breaking band.

So, to you, Kitchen Dwellers, I must now implore: With the recent announcement of the government’s attempt to close NCAR, the Boulder-based all-important center for atmospheric research, we need your music now more than ever.

Shawn, Torrin, Max, and Joe:  If you truly can use the power of music to control the weather, we need you to harness that power for the good of us all! Sing from high on the mountaintops, let your notes ring throughout the land. Bring the Katabatic forces together, and let’s fucking fix this planet!

Is that too much to ask from a 3-song EP?

I don’t know. It’s pretty fucking good though.

~Jason