Like a lot of people out there it was Kyng’s second album ‘Burn the Serum’ that introduced me to the band, and whilst that album (and especially the stunning title track) spent a lot of the year on the playlist, this third release might even edge it. The huge potential was there and the only question seemed to be ‘when’ the rest of the world would wake up not ‘if’…
‘Breathe in the Water’ is exactly the album I had hoped for, not just a facsimile of earlier work that had its peaks and flat ground, but an album brimming with life and power and potential.
Here you have a band (and a three-piece at that) who play to their strengths – it’s heavy (think Badmotorfinger Soundgarden with a wildness that offsets the dourness of Grunge) and it’s chock full of great riffs, as you might expect, OK given. BUT this time what really thrusts to the fore is how well the band as a whole nail this collection – how big that drum and bass sound, and how the guitar sound has filled out and gotten just a little more expansive without overindulging. And then there are the vocals – confident, kick-ass and so damned good.
The best thing though? This is an album that starts out great and stays great, and whilst it has it’s rushes it is certainly Kyng’s most consistent and powerful statement to date. Opening the heavy, fast flurry of ‘Pristine Warning’ which should be more than enough to draw most in the title track offers a little desert rock before ‘Closer to the End’ underlines how far Veliz has come vocally – there’s a darkness there as well as a range and you get the feeling that this guy could sing a grocery list and make you weep! (though thankfully lyrics on ‘Breathe in the Water’ are one of its finest aspects).
After the barrage of ‘Follow Blindly’ a change of pace comes with the gentler, soothing ‘Show Me Your Love’ which really does underline Veliz’s range. Even the ‘interludes’ work here, and as readers will know I’m not a fan of dressing up small bites of music as tracks in themselves, but the ‘Reckoning Parts 1 and 2’ actually enhance things. Sure there are some commercial stabs and they’re all West Coast – ‘The Dead’ isn’t a million miles away from Pearl Jam and the most commercial track here ‘Bipolar Schemes’ has more than a hint of Dave Grohl’s current band.
The album closes just as strongly as it began with the contemplative ‘Hide from You’ featuring some great changes and ‘Song For a Broken Masque’ a fine rocker that captures the sound of early Seattle. That’s followed by the soaring, roaring ‘The Battle of the Saint/Lines’ and the modern melody filled ‘Not Enough’ which bleed into the final word as ‘What I’m Made of’ segues into ‘Reckoning Part 2’ closing things out.
This is an album that you don’t want to end and one that manages that oh so tricky feat these days of keeping you listening to the end. It’s Kyng’s best so far and one of the very best of the year.
