Classes and parking and buying books and lines, lines, lines everywhere can make the first week of school the most stressful on the calendar. If you are among the 37,500 students in need of some relief, look no further. Your therapeutic music go-to has come in the form of Trevor Hall’s seventh studio album “Kala.”
Written in Hawaii and recorded in Los Angeles, “Kala” includes melodies from the 2014 EP “Chapter of the Forrest” and 2015 EP “Unpack Your Memories.” Hall sticks to his guns on “Kala” and continues to soothe with coarse vocals and acid jazz undertones.
Whether you’re a dedicated Trevor Hall fan or just someone passing through his river of healing sounds, this album will get you.
“Kala” is the last installment in Hall’s trilogy of self-discovery. Meaning “time” in Sanskrit, “Kala” is Hall’s way of teaching listeners about the ambiguity and fluidity of time. Each song on the album sounds like a lesson, a gospel according to Trevor.
You might want to start burning your Target-bought incense now.
“This album mirrors my journey with time…. my journey to surrender more deeply to it. ‘Kala’ is about time the healer, time the teacher, time the friend, and all the lessons within,” Hall wrote on his website. “My hope and prayer is that these songs and stories help inspire us to look at this journey of life in all its vastness rather than its limitation.”
Sounds heavy, eh?
But “Kala” is far from a two-hour power yoga session. It’s a reggae and guitar-leaden sermon that begins with the body-rocker “To Zion.” The album continues its meditation with the sleepy “All in Due Time” and the piano ballad “Forgive” featuring slam poet Luka Lesson.
Even at 16 tracks, the album never strays into repetitiveness. Each song is its own soothing entity.
Hall detours from a mid-album lull on “Kala” with an ode to all the mommas on “Mother” featuring Xavier Rudd and Tubby Love.
The album’s eighth and highlight track is “You Can’t Rush Your Healing,” which drives home Hall’s true intentions for “Kala.”
“But everybody’s got that chapter of darker, darker days. Saturn seems to be returning and his essence can’t be tamed,” Hall hums. “You can’t rush your healing. Darkness has its teachings.”
“Kala” concludes with the drum-driven “Guidance,” the earthy, groovy “Belo Galo” and the head nodding, Jack Johnson-esque “You Got My Love.”
The point of this album is to get you to close your eyes and sway. Trevor Hall is an expert at taking it easy, and with “Kala” he permeates the soul and coaxes us into a state of relaxation with softly sung lyrics and melodic guitars.
“Kala” won’t complete your homework or pay your bills, but this album is the music you listen to on the way to class, in transit and whenever you need some solace.