While some albums aim to sound cohesive, Soft Construction’s second album ‘Release Me From Your Kung Fu Grip’ is the complete opposite. Instead, it dares to feel unpredictable. Soft Construction, a solo project based in London, throws genre labels out the window. At times it leans into psychedelic rock, then off into ambient, industrial, or experimental zones. You don’t always know where it’s going but that’s exactly what makes it so interesting to listen to.
The opening track, “Control Yourself”, sets the tone perfectly: full throttle from the start, with a wall of sound that builds and shifts before the vocals sneak in late, unexpectedly. I thought it might be an instrumental at first. There’s a kind of tension in that delay that pays off when the lyrics finally land.
Then comes “The Embrace”, one of the most layered tracks on the album. It sounds like video game synths got dropped into a steel factory in the best possible way. And again, the vocals arrive late, but they’re haunting when they do. The chorus stuck with me: “I don’t want to be apart anymore / You know it’s you that I adore.”
“What This Could Mean for Us” continues that sense of urgency and darkness, like a soundtrack to a strange dream or an indie sci-fi film. The lyrics feel especially poetic here, reflective and dense: “I want to come alive in your art / But it means breaking from what’s safe.” It’s this kind of writing that gives the album weight, even when the soundscape gets chaotic.
Then comes “Uninvited Guest”, one of my personal favourites. The vocal effects on this track hit different. They’re eerie but inviting, kind of like you’re being told a ghost story through an old TV.
Across the album, the production is ambitious and full of texture. “Left Below “really shows off that layering, it’s rich and heavy. “What matters now is underground” repeats like a warning, and there’s this apocalyptic beauty to it.
There are a few moments that feel a bit long (“Is There Another Way?” could’ve been a little shorter) but I didn’t mind too much. The album invites you to sit in each space for a while. Plus, it’s full of surprises like the gorgeous instrumental “The Key to Opening All Doors”. Someone in the game or film industry should be paying attention to this track.
“Captured” has this clever emotional switch. It starts like something ominous is about to unfold (as we can also expect from the title), but then shifts into a more upbeat feel. The tension doesn’t go away but it takes a different shape.
Then there’s the chaotic but compelling “I’ll Bomb Your House Into The Ground, Missy!”. If it’s a reference, I missed it, but it still works. The track creates this feeling of distance, with vocals that sound like they’re echoing from afar.
The final song, “Solutions-Focused”, is a fitting end with introspective vibes. The lyrics feel vulnerable: “How could you be lost when you’re already home?” It’s a calm end to a restless album, like the eye of a storm.
Overall, ‘Release Me From Your Kung Fu Grip’ isn’t trying to fit neatly into a box. It’s strange, emotional, and completely unafraid to explore. There’s a confidence to the way it swerves between styles, and I came away really impressed by how much ground it covers, musically and emotionally.
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