Kyng fans can look forward to a new album on October 7th. The third album since the band formed in 2008. Plenty of heavy riffs and soothing vocals await those who seek ‘Breathe In The Water’. This Los Angeles, California based trio has gained a loyal following and rightfully so. The versatility that exists among band members Eddie Veliz on guitar and lead vocals, Pepe Clarke on drums and Tony Castaneda on bass and back-up vocals is tight knit.
I must admit I’m fairly new to listening to Kyng. I’ve heard of them for a few years, so I knew of them, but now that I finally have a chance to listen to their stuff, I am liking it. It’s a little tough to categorize Kyng, they can be heavy like a straight up hardcore metal band or they can be mellow like a free roaming gypsy flowing wherever life takes them. So Kyng tends to combine these two elements to create a unique sound of their own. ‘Breathe In The Water’ displays the talent this trio has in executing various styles of music together. The first track, “Pristine Warning” is a barn burning stampeder of a song that comes out the gate like a raging bull with heavy rolling crushing riffs, definitely a good way to get attention. The second song, title track, “Breathe In The Water” changes the pace slightly, not as fast but still heavy as Pepe and Tony make their presence known with percussion.
Eddie’s vocals really shine on the track “Show Me Your Love”. Musically a mellow-ish song featuring hauntingly heartfelt lyrics that’ll give you goosebumps as Eddie sings that he doesn’t need to have his door kicked opened, pulled to his knees and dragged across the floor to be shown love. “Show Me Your Love” is a song that sticks out on this album not only because of the singing but the music gives me déjà vu because it seems like I’ve been listening to this song for years even though I’ve only begun listening to it for about two weeks. Just one of those eerie cool things I’ve noticed on this track.
What I like about Kyng and their music is the riffs that take me away like a floating leaf down a river’s current just flowing along with the rhythm. I find myself often playing air drums or air guitar during several songs. “Bipolar Schemes” delivers mellow heavy riffs as opposed to the fast fingered guitar pickin’ played on parts of “Hide From You”. This is the kind of stuff I love discovering when hearing songs and I seem to find something more to like about each song every time I listen to the album.
Kyng has made a well-produced album in ‘Breathe In The Water’, with well-crafted songs and lyrics and musical and singing execution on point. This is an album Kyng can be proud of as it mixes heavy and mellow elements for a fine balance. It certainly makes me want to see them live in concert to experience these riffs in person.
Rock On my fellow music junkies, Rock On!!