REVIEW: Kid Kapichi - Fearless Nature

KID KAPICHI get personal on 4th studio album Fearless Nature, using moody indie sounds to get introspective on the end of frontman JACK WILSON's toxic relationship and the new headspaces the loss placed him in. Fearless Nature comes as KID KAPICHI's line up changes for the first time, marrying the themes of change within their latest project with the evolution of the band as a whole; KID KAPICHI have taken their growing pains and created something beautifully raw. 

KID KAPICHI open Fearless Nature within their comfort zone - an anti-Trump track with a floor lead that calls out those who voted him in for his second term. “Turns out the first one was better than the sequel” is delightfully catty, and the use of the dial up turn every 4 bars adds a tension that compliments the angst that opens Fearless Nature. The angst continues in follow-up Intervention, which features a static-radio speak layered into the harmonies throughout the final mix that offers depth throughout its second half. 

From here is where Fearless Nature starts to focus inward, where Shoe Size sets the post-breakup scene with “I’ve been day drinking all night long” upon a moody soundscape with punchy power chord guitars and swinging low verb drums. WILSON's lyrics artfully recount his return to the town with cowboy references (“side saddle/knee highs/yee ha/ that’s a free ride”) delivered with a resigned tone of voice. This matched with the yearning chorus strikes a resonant balance between the surface level fun and the lower-level hurt of being recently single.

This will be the lightest that this theme is portrayed throughout Fearless Nature; Worst Kept Secret explores the moment that the relationship is over, using a “call me” motif in the lyrics to explore the final fights and discussions that put I Know it’s Over by THE SMITH's back into regular rotation. Worst Kept Secret moves between the hurt and the anger of this emotional period, utilising strings and piano without foregrounding them to create the tight chested feeling that the period comes with. A couple tracks later KID KAPICHI serves If You’ve Got Legs, a rockier track speaking to a failed last ditch attempt seeing WILSON walking out the door for good. 

The introduction of lower notes and guitar solos craft anger in the final beat of the relationship, but the reflections don’t end here. Worst Kept Secret gives the impression that it is the gut punch of the breakup tracks, but the real wound comes on penultimate track Saviour. Speaking at wanting his ex to be WILSON's saviour, he airs out the shortcomings of the relationship - “I was confusing, you were misleading/two sides of the story partly true” - while littering tear-jerker anecdotes of having clothes returned unwantedly and admitting he could not do any better for her but not wanting to be without her. Saviour is a gut punch soundtracked by gentle pop beats and live mixed vocals that conjure images of hugging one's legs against a doorway in the hallway.   

The growth on Fearless Nature isn’t limited to the romantic, with tracks such as Stainless Steel speaking on being flesh and blood with a focus on authenticity. The funky bassline, building power chords and upped tempo is a welcome change of pace and still has killer lines such as “do you live in silence with words unspoken/scared that when you pull the chord the parachute won’t open”, though the metaphor of stainless steel falls a little when contrasted with to being real. 

The introspection is not all objective, with tracks including Dark Days Are Coming. The off beat guitars and moody drum lines speak to tell tale depression symptoms of long days in bed and a voice that won’t quiet. It’s paired with Patience which covers the agitation of the cocoon that life changes bring - the to-the-bone desperation to get moving sooner and faster. The pacing of Patience is agitatingly slow; fitting thematically but making it hard to listen to on repeat. Fearless Nature closes on an optimistic note with rabbit hole, a reflective anthem plotted around returning to your home town and managing the memories that conjure up. It’s heavier on the pop and synth sounds that have been present throughout the album's final tracks, and draws threads through the ways in which people stop themselves climbing down the rabbit hole of despair as they grow. It’s chipper while honest and punctuates Fearless Nature well by staying optimistic within the hurt it has detailed.

 As a whole, Fearless Nature is an honest project about growth through adversity, packed with moody synths and indie rock that perfectly soundtrack the trenches that WILSON has trudged through to make it. KID KAPICHI fans will be satisfied with this last hurrah of their original line up as well as the new vulnerability in the lyricism. 

Score: 8/10

Fearless Nature was released on 16th January 2026 via Spinefarm Records.

Words: Julia Brunton

Photos: Chris Georghiou