Kodiak Jack
I was lucky enough to see Kodiak Jack over the course of my summer tour when they played the Joiners in Southampton, so when they dropped me a line about their album I was looking forward to seeing what was on offer from them. Describing themselves simply as ‘rock’, this hard hitting band take a simpler approach to their music to allow you to fully appreciate everything – so I thought I’d better check out the album, Your Death My Glory.
Opening with Crossfire things get off to an ominous start, immediately hammering onwards with a raucous guitar line, pounding rhythm section and a real sense of groovy power behind the scenes. This hard hitting opening sets the album up in an excellent way, immediately suggesting that this is going to be a hard hitting powerful album, full of hammering guitar lines, catchy hooks, and a sense of sheer awesomeness flowing through it. Wasted Youth continues this theme, once again focusing on the guitar to open things before ushering in the gravelly and melodic vocals. Building the track gradually as it progresses, elements are brought in one by one to build on the final mix, resulting in a sound which is funky, styled on southern rock and oozes with live power. This is a track to witness live, a track which will get people moving, dancing, singing along and wanting more and more from the guys – in short, another serious high point on the album (and we’re only on track number 2!).
Your City To Burn follows on with a hell of a job to do, and once again manages to raise the bar of the album. Opening with a faster approach to things and showing that there’s still damned good rock music out there, this track once again seems to capture the live essence of the band and show that when it comes to music, the South Coast could well be a damned good place to start looking. Harking towards Alice In Chains in some ways (layered vocals mostly) there’s a real sense of accessible rock here, the sort of thing which will appeal to fans of hard, fans of soft, and fans of rock music the world over. Throw in a catchy chorus to complete the mix and the result, the track I’d class as my own personal favourite from the album and one I sincerely advise you to check out. Prettier When She Smiles continues the hard hitting approach of the album, but it’s when Anthem For An Underclass and My Condition come into being that another side of the band is shown off, a softer more emotional side. Focusing on acoustic guitars and softening the tone of the album, these tracks stand out for their difference, yet still manage to craft a sound which is familiar from the band, and one which is simply captivating. It’s impossible to do anything other than listen through these two tracks, they just play out, sit you back and make you reflect on everything, a serious moment of calm and reflection which quite frankly, are both stunning.
Returning to the heavier approach for Waves once again, this track was one of the highlights of their live set in Southampton and a track which sounds just as powerful on the record here. More technically advanced than some of the earlier moments on the album, this track combines the power with the technical approach to craft a sound which is once again funky and hard hitting, but also seriously heavy. Dark and mysterious at times, this is another serious high point on the album and a track which I personally feel could well be a break through for the band, the sort of track which will make people sit up and take note, making them want to hear more and showing what the band are capable of. My Fake Jesus almost sounds odd following on from the catchy tones of Waves, yet once again hammers out a bass heavy mix which is sure to get people moving and singing along from the off. Heavy once again, the roaring vocal line seems to combine with the hammering guitars, pounding rhythm section and overall sense of power, resulting in a live anthem in the waiting.
Penultimate track We Are Your Saviours once again seems to come as a demonstration of the ability in the band, opening on a dark tone once again and focusing heavily on the guitar work, continuing to keep a sense of melody at the forefront of the mix in order to keep the track open and accessible. Returning to the funky power once again, this track may well signal the approaching of the end, yet it still manages to keep the album alive, not fading out or finishing until the band are done and leading into the final moments of Your Death My Glory to close things. Finishing on another high point, the closing moments of this album are once again hard hitting and energetic, leaving on a note which will leave people wanting more, returning to the beginning of the album and knowing that what they’ve just heard has been a quality record. Finishing on a high sure, but the whole album’s been damned good so it’s no real surprise!
I loved the live show which Kodiak Jack put on, it was full of energy and power, showing that they can play live, know what they’re doing, and obviously have a solid following. My fear was that this would be lost in the mix on the album, but the result is something spectacular which actually captures that energy and shows that even on a recording, these guys sound damned good! I guess the only thing left to say is more please….pretty please.
To find out more about Kodiak Jack, check out their Facebook page HERE.
Words: Dave Nicholls
Opening with Crossfire things get off to an ominous start, immediately hammering onwards with a raucous guitar line, pounding rhythm section and a real sense of groovy power behind the scenes. This hard hitting opening sets the album up in an excellent way, immediately suggesting that this is going to be a hard hitting powerful album, full of hammering guitar lines, catchy hooks, and a sense of sheer awesomeness flowing through it. Wasted Youth continues this theme, once again focusing on the guitar to open things before ushering in the gravelly and melodic vocals. Building the track gradually as it progresses, elements are brought in one by one to build on the final mix, resulting in a sound which is funky, styled on southern rock and oozes with live power. This is a track to witness live, a track which will get people moving, dancing, singing along and wanting more and more from the guys – in short, another serious high point on the album (and we’re only on track number 2!).
Your City To Burn follows on with a hell of a job to do, and once again manages to raise the bar of the album. Opening with a faster approach to things and showing that there’s still damned good rock music out there, this track once again seems to capture the live essence of the band and show that when it comes to music, the South Coast could well be a damned good place to start looking. Harking towards Alice In Chains in some ways (layered vocals mostly) there’s a real sense of accessible rock here, the sort of thing which will appeal to fans of hard, fans of soft, and fans of rock music the world over. Throw in a catchy chorus to complete the mix and the result, the track I’d class as my own personal favourite from the album and one I sincerely advise you to check out. Prettier When She Smiles continues the hard hitting approach of the album, but it’s when Anthem For An Underclass and My Condition come into being that another side of the band is shown off, a softer more emotional side. Focusing on acoustic guitars and softening the tone of the album, these tracks stand out for their difference, yet still manage to craft a sound which is familiar from the band, and one which is simply captivating. It’s impossible to do anything other than listen through these two tracks, they just play out, sit you back and make you reflect on everything, a serious moment of calm and reflection which quite frankly, are both stunning.
Returning to the heavier approach for Waves once again, this track was one of the highlights of their live set in Southampton and a track which sounds just as powerful on the record here. More technically advanced than some of the earlier moments on the album, this track combines the power with the technical approach to craft a sound which is once again funky and hard hitting, but also seriously heavy. Dark and mysterious at times, this is another serious high point on the album and a track which I personally feel could well be a break through for the band, the sort of track which will make people sit up and take note, making them want to hear more and showing what the band are capable of. My Fake Jesus almost sounds odd following on from the catchy tones of Waves, yet once again hammers out a bass heavy mix which is sure to get people moving and singing along from the off. Heavy once again, the roaring vocal line seems to combine with the hammering guitars, pounding rhythm section and overall sense of power, resulting in a live anthem in the waiting.
Penultimate track We Are Your Saviours once again seems to come as a demonstration of the ability in the band, opening on a dark tone once again and focusing heavily on the guitar work, continuing to keep a sense of melody at the forefront of the mix in order to keep the track open and accessible. Returning to the funky power once again, this track may well signal the approaching of the end, yet it still manages to keep the album alive, not fading out or finishing until the band are done and leading into the final moments of Your Death My Glory to close things. Finishing on another high point, the closing moments of this album are once again hard hitting and energetic, leaving on a note which will leave people wanting more, returning to the beginning of the album and knowing that what they’ve just heard has been a quality record. Finishing on a high sure, but the whole album’s been damned good so it’s no real surprise!
I loved the live show which Kodiak Jack put on, it was full of energy and power, showing that they can play live, know what they’re doing, and obviously have a solid following. My fear was that this would be lost in the mix on the album, but the result is something spectacular which actually captures that energy and shows that even on a recording, these guys sound damned good! I guess the only thing left to say is more please….pretty please.
To find out more about Kodiak Jack, check out their Facebook page HERE.
Words: Dave Nicholls