K-os Releases New Album: Atlantis – Hymns For Disco

K-os makes music for himself, first and foremost. This is at the musical heart of his third album, ATLANTIS – Hymns for Disco. Here, k-os challenged himself by creating a sonic landscape that shows no boundaries and crosses many musical styles, sounds and generations. And while it was certainly not his intention, he had no choice but to make his most personal and revealing album yet.

It all began with the first song he wrote for the new album, the uplifting “Sunday Morning.” Creating this song opened his eyes and brought him back to the lifestyle and values he learnt during his fundamentalist upbringing. “If Saturday night was party night, Sunday morning was family time in my house – from the morning activities to the dinner served,” he says. “It’s funny I left all that behind to see what the world was like on my own terms. Everything then was go-go-go! I felt so ambitious with so much to accomplish, only to now understand the sacredness of resting and having time to contemplate and renew yourself.”

On his two previous albums, Exit and Joyful Rebellion, k-os gave his insight on the current and future state of hip-hop and many timely issues from politics and fame to humanity. Now, on ATLANTIS – Hymns for Disco, instead of holding up a mirror to the world and hiding behind it, he has turned the mirror onto himself. He is inviting listeners to experience someone who’s in the process of accepting all points of his character and to hear about the most private and vulnerable parts of his life, which include tales of self-discovery, love and heartbreak.

“The Rain” is a painfully sincere song on which k-os sings with a new sense of honesty and rawness. There are no samples, no rap, no musical mixtures and concoctions; he keeps it pure, simple and real from beginning to end. “I was surprised by how well I could emote fresh cuts from a situation in the past where I was ruled by a woman,” he admits. “I really thought I was over it. But emotions build up inside and if these remain unattended, they only build up further.

The fourteen tracks on ATLANTIS – Hymns for Disco delve into many different directions, but are tied by themes of veracity, forgiveness and self-awareness. For this extremely personal album, it only made sense for k-os to collaborate with a few of his trusted friends. Both Sam Roberts and Kevin Drew (Broken Social Scene) make a welcome appearance on “Valhalla.” While Buck 65 and Kamau help close the album with the stirring opus, “Ballad of Noah,” which shows that k-os is less defined by public acceptance and more concerned with self-acceptance.

k-os stands for ‘knowledge of self’ and on this new album he has not only identified a path to ‘knowledge of self,’ but brings us on that never-ending journey. “We shouldn’t allow ourselves to get flooded by other’s opinions of us, but instead look within ourselves for foundation,” theorizes k-os. “I don’t want to walk around thinking I am here to change people or the world. I am not. I can only change myself. Cities can sink, but I believe that people can survive if they follow a map or a compass marked Knowledge of Self.”

K-os releases ATLANTIS - Hymns for Disco on February 26th.