Two Star & the Dream Police

Two Star & the Dream Police is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter, music producer, and multi-instrumentalist Mk.gee, released on February 9, 2024, through R&R. The album was supported by five singles: "Candy", "How Many Miles", "Are You Looking Up", "You Got It", and "Dream Police".

The album received critical acclaim, with particular praise for the lyrical content, production, and Mk.gee's musical growth and vocal performances.

Background

Two Star & the Dream Police is Mk.gee's first release since his debut mixtape A Museum of Contradiction in 2020. In 2021, before working on the album, Mk.gee collaborated with musician Dijon, serving as co-writer and co-producer on his debut studio album Absolutely. Since then, Dijon has been Mk.gee's frequent collaborator.

Singles

The album was preceded by the release of five singles. "Candy" and "How Many Miles" were released together as the double lead single to the then-unannounced album on August 11, 2023. Will Schube of FLOOD Magazine described the former as a "funk-leaning lo-fi pop jam filled with psychedelic guitar squiggles and a magnificent use of vocoder" and the latter as an R&B-inspired song that "showcases [Mk.gee]'s gifts as a songwriter and vocalist." Joshua Minsoo Kim of Rolling Stone analyzed "How Many Miles" as a song about "feeling lost and finding yourself" and deemed it the album's highlight. Brady Brickner-Wood of Pitchfork praised the song and said, "No song better illustrates Mk.gee's gifts than 'How many miles.'"

On October 20, 2023, Mk.gee released another double single "Are You Looking Up" and "You Got It". Both songs were met with critical praise, with Dazed including the former in its list of "20 best tracks of 2023", placing it at number 12, while the latter being named the 26th best song of the year by The Fader. In June 2024, "Are You Looking Up" was featured on the American comedy-drama series The Bear.

On January 19, 2024, the album's fifth single "Dream Police" was released, followed by the announcement of the album release date and title.

Composition

Musically, Two Star & the Dream Police has been described by Hypebeast as a "genre-surfing bedroom pop that's lo-fi yet bright [and] intimate yet expansive" record with elements of indie and alternative.

Critical reception

Upon release, Two Star & the Dream Police was met with acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 83, based on four reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".

Reviewing for Clash, Ana Lamond wrote, "There is an immersive quality across the tracklist that instantly strikes through. Each track is submerged in a nocturnal wash of acoustics, playful in its use of distance, textures and melody. [...] Sonically, Two Star & The [Dream] Police is able to defy the traditional conventions of a ballad, whilst reaching into a magnetic vulnerability through [Mk.gee]'s pen. Max Gayler of The Line of Best Fit praised the album, highlighting the lyrical content, production and Mk.gee's vocals, and wrote, "Clocking in at just over 33 minutes, these 12 songs carry the weight of an artistry so well studied and expertly executed. Pitchfork's writer Brady Brickner-Wood called it a "magnificent debut album", lauding its production and vocal performances, and said, "the magic of [the album is that] nothing in contemporary music sounds quite like it, yet it seems to have always been with us, hovering just outside the realm of possibility."

Critics' ranking

Promotion and tours

After the release of the two lead singles, Mk.gee announced a 5-show tour called Inside Each of Us Are Two Stars, which included shows in Brooklyn (October 16 at the Music Hall of Williamsburg), Toronto (October 18 at the Great Hall), Chicago (October 21 at the Lincoln Hall), Los Angeles (November 1 at the Roxy Theatre), and San Francisco (November 3 at Rickshaw Stop). On February 16, Mk.gee held a one-night live show in London. The show was originally set to be held at Oslo Hackney, but was moved to the EartH Hall, a larger venue, due to high demand.

On February 24, 2024, Mk.gee made an appearance at the Jil Sander Fall Winter 2024 Runaway Show in Milan, performing "How Many Miles", "Alesis" and "Dream Police", alongside Benji B. On April 11, 2024, Mk.gee performed "Are You Looking Up" on the late-night talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live!, marking his debut performance on television.

Mk.gee has embarked on a longer, 18-show tour in North America to promote Two Star & the Dream Police. The tour began on April 23, 2024, in San Diego, California and concluded on May 19, 2024, in Boston, Massachusetts.

Track listing

Credits adapted from Spotify.

References