Photo Credit: Press

Words by Liv Davis

KAWALA HANG UP THEIR BOOTS WITH THEIR FINAL ALBUM: KAWALA COLLECTION 

Marking the end of an era, ‘Kawala Collection‘ serves as a fitting farewell—one last
reminder of the energy, passion, and craft that made the band so beloved. The group has
been producing and releasing music for around a decade. They are waving their final
goodbye with a farewell tour departing on February 1st, celebrating their years in the
industry. 

The band first introduced themselves through their debut album ‘Better With You’ which
captured the heart of their fans through the hit single ‘Ticked to Ride’ (which had an
exceptional feature on FIFA 2021) kickstarting their journey. 

But before they close the curtain on their journey the band have offered a final taste into their
life through their new eight-track album ‘Kawala Collection’. The album combines a
perfect blend of upbeat tunes and some more mellow ‘in your feelings’ type beats, keeping
to the traditional KAWALA style of writing and producing.

‘Time Slipping Away’, opens the album with a fun “dancing round your room at 3am” type
vibe whilst reminiscing on their years of success as a band played through a mix of stunning
guitar riffs and drum loops. Their lyrics “Life gets in the way/ no time to slow it down” is a
reflection of their music career and how they have made the sudden decision to ‘hang up
their boots’ 

Building on the lively dance track, the band engages fans with another infectious, uplifting
song, ‘Good Morning’. It encapsulates the cliché essence of love through a vibrant mix
of synths, drums, and bass, creating a musical depiction of a ‘perfect morning’ with its lyrics.
This is the kind of song you’d want as your alarm tone to start your day right.  

Vocalists Jim Higson and Daniel McCarthy utilise their chemistry during their slower song
‘What’s Up’ employing emotive lyrics such as “give you comfort and nothing else” to deliver
a passionate yet catchy performance. They use a loop of guitar and drums to create the
perfect track for presenting the song. 

Continuing the slower route, ‘Old Me’ focuses on their future experience without the band,
linking the lyrics with their music career “Old me better be kind/ I hope he’s happy when I get
there” as if the band are reminiscing on their time and achievements across the years full of
love and emotion. They have successfully captured the art of looking back on vibrant
memories through lyrics helping embrace their fans deeper into their experience. 

Released in 2024, ‘Feel You’ released as one of the bands singles before the initial album
release captures summer in a song, with its upbeat mash-up of guitar riffs produced by the
talented Dan Lee combined alongside the rhythm of drums and guitar (Reeve Coulson and
Ben Batten) helps transport listeners from the gloomiest of weathers to a hot summers day
with its good vibes and non-stop beat. 

‘Honeycomb’ and ‘Make A Difference’ continue after one another to make that
seamless blend of sound that pairs the two together perfectly. Both share an unmissable and
captivating intro that instantly draws people to a song, placing the two next to one another on
an album creates a perfect six minutes of music captivating fans in a loop of electric sound. 

Amongst the collection of songs on the album, many of the songs included are popular fan
favourites which were released previously. ‘American Deadline’, one of the top
streamed fan favourite singles from ‘Kawala Collection’ wraps up the album with its
uplifting instrumental showing off their classic sound. It’s no wonder that it’s one of their most
popular songs. 

‘Kawala Collection‘ is a beautifully produced album with a combination of tight
harmonies and unmissable riffs letting the fans indulge in both mellow and euphoric lyrics
sending their career off on a high. This album is a wonderful send-off for the band and is one
that will stick with people forever not before they send themselves off on their farewell tour.
It’s already known that this is one you wouldn’t want to miss being played live.