KEN mode – Success (Season of Mist)

Over the last couple of years, I’ve been pretty busy and ignoring my duties on the reviewing music front. Kim Monaghan, who suffered a fatal accident at the hands of a columbian drug lord (I knew that guy was shifty) has left the site, and BCD lies dormant until I can decide its fate. Now, however, seems like as good a time as any to resume my duties, and I’ve chosen a banger to start off with.

KEN mode‘s aptly titled new album ‘Success‘ popped into my inbox earlier this week for review, and I was immediately struck by what a good name the band had chosen. Later, I decided I should probably actually listen to them as they clearly have a great taste in band names, therefore it’s possible that they also know how to write a song or two. I wasn’t disapointed, in fact, I can say with little doubt that this will feature in my top ten records of the year.

The band have apparently been around for as long as this site, and this is their SIXTH album. How this has escaped me for so long is a mystery to this day, and I will be updating my ‘NewBandFinder’ app in my brain, as this is a real sin!

The band seem to straddle the line between post hardcore and straight out sludge metal pretty expertly, leaning between the Unsane and Melvins, adding a nice dose of The Lapse and Shellac, and even a twist of The Jesus Lizard for good measure. Witty lyrics, biting guitars, and ‘that Steve Albini drum sound’ work in near-perfect harmony to great success (pun intented).  It’s clear the above named bands are inspirations on this record, and the band appear to wear their devotion proudly on their sleeves to great effect. Hell, they even recorded this album with the aforementioned engineering master Steve Albini, which only adds to great selection of jagged hardness.

From ‘Blessed‘ through to ‘Dead Actors‘, the album growls, spits, and snarls its way into the listeners hearts in a painfully short 38 minutes. For me, the moment this record ends, I immediately start it up again on track one. For me, this is the sign of a really great record.

9.5/10