The K, — Burning Pattern Etiquette
Darkly poetic, melodic hardcore is largely a thing of the past these days, occuring only far from the mainstream. Blatant individuality and uncomfortable examinations of the shadow do not mesh well with today's constantly surveilled, politically correct environment. While instrumental music has flourished, the lyrics of rock music, in particular, have suffered.
This band's sound is quintessentially 90's, a sound that came from America, originally, and has now made its way to Belgium. The loud/soft dynamic, the eerie, bass-driven verse sections, belong to nu metal and grunge as much as any form of punk, plodding pick-bass riffs building into greater tension as a tritone chord from the guitar swells in. Blatantly dissonant, slightly detuned chords are strummed with a viscious sharpness when the chorus drops.
Much like Jesus Lizard or Tomahawk, the songs are short, with easy to follow alternations between a few sections, so the oddness really comes from the angular riffs and discordant note choices, their illogical and unresolved feeling. The K.'s guitarist prefers the same high gain twang and fried dark blues tonality as Duane Denison.
The singer sounds unlike any of the lead voices of any of the bands I've listed as influences, with a naturally higher voice, similar in register to Perry Farrell from Jane's Addiction. He has a very satisfying melodic growl, and chooses to deliver most lines in a spirited, raucous yell. His enthuasiasm is infectious, and his melodicism is strong even at his harshest moments. The verses sometimes feature a style of aggressively spoken, rhyming verse which NoMeansNo would often use as well, an almost theatrical oration likely rooted in Black Flag's forays into spoken word.
The lyrics are passable, and often sound great in context. They stick mostly to ambiguous but potentially emotional phrases such as "Save me, save me, one more time / I can't explain why I've done it", or "I've been drifting, I've been drifting in - unrewarded". It becomes obvious on occasion that English is not the band's first language, such as in the clunky repetition of the line "There's a feeling in the room, hanging around with a nameless loon". This can be a hinderance when the band is attempting to sound snarky and self-aware, although other times they land this perfectly. Generally, it's music that can be easily played without thinking too hard about the lyrical content, but in this respect, they don't measure up to their influences.
At least 2/3 of the album is thoroughly irresistable to me, each song with its own delicious, darkly melodic hook to shout along to. The rest is a little awkward, but earnest enough, and hardly embarrassing. The album is easy to play through at 38 minutes. I've been starved for new music in this vein, and this a highly enjoyable album. If you're craving dissonant rock with the eerie, unsettled atmosphere often heard in the 90's, this is a solid entry.