John Lebanon’s Kite Without a String: A Beautiful Indie-Folk Journey of Change and Belonging
Sometimes you dream of change, and then it happens, new environment, new home, new start and yet you still think it’s incomplete. Like you moved to a new city, looked around at all the strange streets, and realized you have absolutely no idea where you fit in anymore? Exactly, that weird, floating feeling is what you get. What makes it interesting is, physically you’re there, but your mind is still thousands of miles away, stuck somewhere between your old bedroom and your favorite childhood food spot and all the people you left behind.
So tell you what, if you are familiar with that feeling, then you need to put this new record by John Lebanon on repeat. They just dropped a brand new album called Kite Without a String, and I can boldly say this is the track for those who feel untethered. The band started out as just a bunch of lonely, quiet demos recorded in the underground music scene of Beirut. But over the span of ten full years, those rough ideas traveled across the ocean, grew some serious legs, and turned into a full five-piece indie-folk band based right out of Boston.
It’s no secret but those behind the music you hear today are, Roy Souaid, Matt Deluccia, Karl Deek, Marc Chehwane, Khalid Razick, and the rest of the crew together have created something that feels completely real, relatable and surreal. This isn’t that over-polished, plastic radio pop that sounds like it was made by a computer in a corporate office. It is raw, gritty, and packed with everything from warm acoustic guitars and a trombone to beautiful Middle Eastern influences. To fans of bands like Vampire Weekend, Wilco, or The Shins, you are going to fall in love with this record, so without wasting much time let’s see what’s in stock for us.
Welcoming listeners to a grand opening is the track “Hurricane Eyes” and man, it does not waste any time. It starts the whole journey with a real sense of urgency. You get these driving electric guitars and a fast, forward momentum that makes you feel like you are packing your bags in a rush. It makes you feel that initial panic of restlessness. It captures that chaotic moment when your life is changing fast, everything around you feels like a blur, and you are just trying to keep your head above water in the middle of a storm. It is loud, it is moving, and it sets the stage perfectly.
Now if the opening song of the record is the panic of a storm, this track titled “Kite Without a String” is the quiet moment right after it passes. The band intentionally slows down the pace here, pulling back the heavy electric guitars to give the music some room to breathe. I love the message this track portrays, it ask us to start learning how to let go of the things you cannot control while still remaining true to who you are.
Think about the image of a kite that has just lost its string. At first, it sounds terrifying, right? You are totally untethered, floating away into the big blue sky, completely at the mercy of the wind. You have no anchor. But this song flips that fear on its head. Instead of treating that moment like a total disaster, the track frames it as a necessary step toward finding real peace. It asks you to move on and find that new place you can call home.
On “Maksour” you can see how easily this track feels like the most intimate and heavy moment on the whole album. Roy sings this one entirely in Arabic, and even if you do not speak a single word of the language, you will feel exactly what he means. I love how the band strips away all the loud instruments and leaves the song totally bare.
The word itself hints at being broken, and the song is a deep dive into vulnerability, old memories, and the slow, painful process of healing. It acts as a heavy emotional anchor for the first part of the album. It is the musical equivalent of sitting alone in a dark room, letting yourself finally cry about the things you have been hiding from everyone else.
Now the band then switches things up on “Vermontier (Dusk Edition)“. Just when things feel a bit too heavy, Vermontier (Dusk Edition) rolls in to save the day. This track is a massive turning point for the album. It’s built around these gorgeous, shimmering 12-string acoustic guitars that instantly make the whole room feel bigger.
The message of Vermontier is all about transition. And you know when you move to a new place, you’ve got to let go off some of your stuff and transition into the way people live there, embrace your new environment. It feels like that exact moment when the sun goes down, the air cools off, and you finally stop worrying about the past. It shifts the album away from loneliness and opens the door to new possibilities and fresh starts. It feels like taking a deep breath of cold mountain air after a long, sweaty drive.
As we enter the second half of the album, the band starts focusing on the things that actually keep us glued to the earth when life gets crazy. “Mizuri” is a big, expansive song that brings in layered vocal harmonies and a rich, full arrangement. This track tackles big themes like faith, endurance, and just keeping your feet moving forward when you want to quit. It is a massive moral boost. The message is simple: life is tough, and living under foreign skies can make you feel small, but you have the strength to persevere if you keep your eyes on the horizon.
Then we get to this track “Petit Pierre“, which scales things back down to earth. This song is a beautiful, light little tune that focuses on the small stuff. It relies on smooth guitars and gentle rhythms to paint a picture of nature, stability, and everyday life. I love how those melodies are nature tuned. It makes you wanna pick up a chair, lay in the little garden or forest around and enjoy nature.
To me Petit Pierre is a great reminder that you do not need grand gestures or massive success to find peace. Sometimes, meaning is just found in a quiet conversation with a friend, a walk through the trees, or a simple daily ritual like making your morning coffee. It is a sweet, grounding moment that makes you smile.
See if you like your folk music with a bit of a modern twist, “Self Made World” is going to be your favorite track. The band calls this style “folktronica,” because they take their classic acoustic folk textures and blend them with subtle, modern electronic elements. Things are a bit emotional here, the track wants us to embrace the fact that no matter how chaotic and crazy the world is, we have the power to build our own little world of love and balance with the people we care about. It is triumphant, modern, and incredibly satisfying to listen to.
Finally, the album wraps up with a special track called “I Like to Play“. This one feels like a total time capsule. It’s track that has just a single voice and a raw guitar, recorded straight from the vault. It ends the album exactly where every single song on earth starts: with a human being just wanting to express themselves. It’s a beautiful song that says, no matter how complicated life gets, or how far away from home you wander, you can always find your true self again through a simple piece of art. You can find your dream out there and live life the fullest. Embrace change but remain true to yourself and everyone around you.
To me John Lebanon did not just make a collection of random songs to stream in the background while you do your dishes. “Kite Without a String is a beautiful, deliberate loop of longing, grit, love, and skies. It is a giant reminder that even when you feel like a kite that has lost its string, floating away into the clouds, you can still find your way back down to earth.
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