Album Review – Colossus by Kill the Kong (GAIN/Sony Music)
Kill the Kong are a Swedish band who don’t play melodic death metal. They are actually more of a metalcore/hardcore outfit and have just released their second album called Colossus.
They are a big band, in members at least, if not yet in sales. There are 7 people in the band in total including 2 vocalists. Kill the Kong are Timo Kumpumäki and Sebastian Jarfelt on vocals. Mattias Sjostrand and Micke Karlsson are the guitarists and Andreas Sjosted is on the bass. Finally, Erik Lantz is on percussion while Niklas Hansson is on the drums.
Kill the Kong formed in 2015 and released their debut, self titled, album not long after. They cite bands like Slipknot, Architects, Parkway Drive, Upon A Burning body and Every Time I Die as major influences. Kill the Kong aim to bring high energy, heavy but balanced metal to your ears with a focus on hard riffs and clever percussion.
Colossus has 10 tracks on it and is around 34 minutes long. With 7 members in the band, 5 on instruments, they do have a big sound with loads of drumming and interesting riffs but overall there is a lot of pretty standard, almost stereotypical metalcore on Colossus. That may not be a bad thing to a lot of people and there isn’t really a bad song on the album but there are some that just fail to inspire a bit. There are also a couple absolute bangers on here that really show what Kill the Kong are capable of. May be it is the quality of those stand out tracks that make the others sound weaker.
One such rager is The Antagonist. A fast and brutally heavy track with vicious vocals and a really cool riff. The drums and percussion sounds huge and the two heavy vocalists trading off gives the song some real power. Another really interesting song is called Map of Wounds. It stands out on the album as something a little different. There is a groove inspired feel to a lot of the verses and percussion that gives the track an industrial feel. The vocals run at a lower tone. It is one of those songs that just feel a bit different. A bit inspired and a bit unique.
Juggernaut (Wolfpack) is one of my favourites, reminding me a bit of While She Sleeps with its guitar melody at the intro that builds into a full attack. Fast riffing and even faster drumming is accompanied by quick vocals that turn vicious in the chorus. The chorus is catchy and there are loads of little drum sections that explode in your mind. There is a little slow down at the end before it builds back into a huge scream and then a perfect guitar line.
The best song on the album for me though is the closer, The Hurt Stays. This song is fantastic. The riff is intense, the bass is supremely heavy and the vocals are so impressive. This song more than any other shows the way to utilise two vocalists. The chorus brings in a bit of gang vocals and is the best chorus on the album. I love this song. Colossus is worth the full price on this track alone. Skills like this show how big a future these guys have.
Outside of these 4 songs though there are a load more of good, but not great ones. Album opener Hearts Beat has a decent riff and pace but just lacks a standout moment to elevate it above being just a good song. Nerve is about as standard a hardcore/metalcore song as you will find where Pitch Black is a bit too heavy with effects for my liking. Snake Eyes is another heavy one which I like. It has a good pace and strong sounding bass to it and makes for good filler. Other tracks like Close to the Bone and Burning in Water Drowning in Flames are all okay but just get nowhere near tracks like The Hurt Stays.
Colossus ends up being a good album with a couple stand out songs and an absolute cracker. Nothing on the album is bad. I must stress that. It is a very good album and you get the sense this band are going places. It is heavy and the two vocalists are utilised cleverly. This isn’t a clean singer and unclean singer. This is two guys singing, shouting, screaming in turn or in unison and adding extra depth and power when they need it. The guitars are solid and there are some good riffs and lines. The bass is strong though occasionally lost behind the drums and percussion which have depth, power and pace. Kill the Kong are well worth a look. Colossus is well worth a listen. I’m off to listen to The Hurt Stays again.
You can pick up a copy of Colossus now on all the usual streaming sites like Apple Music and Spotify. Also you can grab a copy from Kill the Kong at their website along with some other nice merch. You can also pick it up from the Amazon and Apple links below. Find out more about Kill the Kong at their website, on Bandcamp, on Twitter, Instagram and on Facebook. Be sure to like and follow them while you are there.
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Colossus by Kill the Kong (GAIN/Sony Music)
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