The Kite String Tangle

If one could channel the sensation of swooning into sound, it might resemble the music of The Kite String Tangle, the solo project of Brisbane, Australia’s Danny Harley. Born in 1989, Harley got his start crafting richly textured electronic pop in 2013, pairing his gentle falsetto with sumptuous pads and soulful samples. He continued in the same vein on his self-titled 2017 debut album, claiming his place alongside fellow students of heartbreak like Jamie xx and James Blake. On 2017’s The Kite String Tangle Presents: In a Desperate Moment, inspired by a series of concerts with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Harley added strings, guitar and horns, yielding an even more nuanced version of his music. After living in Berlin for a spell, Harley pursued a dark and dangerous reinvention of his sound on 2020’s C()D3X, dialing up the breakbeats and sub-bass and leaning into his clubbier impulses. Even at its heaviest, though, The Kite String Tangle’s music never abandons its sensitive nature.