(((((OPENmind/SATURATEDbrain))))): ***KIKEN exclusive song premiere***

Monday, 29 February 2016

KIKEN exclusive song premiere

Band: KIKEN

Genres: Punk / Rock / Post Punk / Hardcore / Noise / Experimental / Metal / Industrial
Related artists: Life In Vacuum, Congratulations, The Miniatures, Spirits, Coppertone and The Mounties.
Country: Kitchener/Waterloo, Ontario CANADA
Years Active: 2013-present
Song: "Blood Moon"
Album: "Rising"
Year: 2016
For fans of: The Locust, Fantomas, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Frank Zappa, Meshugga, Transistor Transistor, Nine Inch Nails, Antioch Arrow, Life In Vacuum, Refused and The Blood Brothers.

Label(s): Zegema Beach Records / Dingleberry Records
This post's artist is from the November 2015 Mix. This is track #4.

You can download: the January Mix#1 right here or get the new February 2016 Mix#2 here.

KIKEN was first introduced to me through my friend Tony in Congratulations. As both he and Sasha played in that band, he asked me if I'd heard Sasha's new project with Nick Stalkos. Sasha (vocals/translator) is more well known for his guitars and vocal work in Life In Vacuum while Nick (instrumentals/Kiken) has played in a bunch of bands as well as taken part in City & Colour songs (drums) and has recently recorded music for a family film. I answered no to Tony's question and so he showed me the "Instruction" videos which slapped me upside the head. It was like The Locust mixed with Life In Vacuum vocals. I was in heaven. So, long story short I helped release the band's debut EP called 'Rising'.

Quickly back to the early demo songs that ended up being "Instruction 001" and "Instruction 002". These songs/videos are actually really good and encapsulate the band's straight forward musical style with less craziness and more melody. "Instruction 001" is a fantastic song that leans much more towards the opener of 'Rising' called "Blood Moon", which has the track flip flopping around from one part to the next all whilst melting genres (although generally I guess it sounds post-punk, hardcore, and cyber-grind...maybe?). "Instruction 002" is a dancey yet screamy affair that might be tied for my favourite KIKEN song and isn't a stretch from a Transistor Transistor and These Arms Are Snakes hybrid. Hoo-wee that's some good stuff.

Before I do the review of the currently unreleased album, here's a short 44-second promo video that was created for 'Rising':

Transmission #1: "Blood Moon" opens the album and is the perfect track to do so. The 6:02 behemoth rocks out some single notes and noise until 1:19 when the song blasts forth in a screamy and disjointed whirlwind leaving the listener with eardrum charlie horses. At 2:36 the alien audio waves rain down upon the listener and the song dips in and out of this and a myriad of other genres such as jazzy mcjazzerton fests, mental breakdowns, choir, punk, hardcore, metal - the list goes on...
*there will be a music video coming for this song in the next two months so keep your eyes peeled!

Transmission #2: "Killer Instincts" sounds like a bass on a merry go round that is about to puke its guts out, which it does after only 34 seconds.

Transmission #3: "SHI Hounds From the Darkest Star" toys with listener at first, prodding them with eerie sounds and instrumentals that could be likened to a rocketship hurtling through space. The song is very reminiscent of a cross between The Blood Brothers and The Locust, complete with alien voices and a sweet official music video to go along with it. Seriously check the music video it's amazing.

Transmission #4: "Nest" is actually the guy who recorded the band attempting to scream/imitate Sasha's vocals with an insane amount of distortion and manipulation on it. It sounds like a dog yelping and it's hilarious and unsettling simultaneously.

Transmission #5: "The Rising The Hunt" has the first minute sounding like Nine Inch Nails if they were even more goth followed by screaming as well as incoherent barking and babbling. The second half of the track fades out with a repetitious beat that sounds like a record skipping at the end of the side, only to then have have the experimental/jungle drums and weird animal sounds begin. A crazy song.

Transmission #6: "Red Rooms" is 47 seconds of driving drums and warped vocals with some rockin' bass guitar licks. This is the song premiere for this post and is linked here and below the discography section.

Transmission #7: "Aphillion" is a slow paced mindfuck with multiple vocalists and a cyclical bass riff that ends up being quite catchy.

Transmission #8: "Oracle No End" closes the EP and the 35 second intro of consecutive and accumulated voices lead into a feedback loop that rides out the remainder of the 2:18 track.

After regaining consciousness it becomes apparent that this record is an all out assault on the senses. As this tends to be the case with alien transmissions it comes as no surprise. What is surprising, however, is that none of the sounds were done with keyboards. Considering the amount of fucked up wizardry that's gone into the recording of this album, to find out it was all done with guitars, bass, drums, vocals and pedals is pretty darn cool.

Today, along with the "Red Rooms" song premiere, the cassette pre-order for 'Rising' was listed at the Zegema Beach Records webiste which is linked here. All pre-orders received before the March 21st, 2106 release date get a free Life In Vacuum sticker and patch. The band will be writing a followup LP starting in April.

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DISCOGRAPHY

2014 - Instruction 001 digital/video single

2015 - Instruction 002 digital/video single

2016 - Rising cassetteEP (stream here and pre-order here)

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(2016) KIKEN - "Red Rooms" (from 'Rising') exclusive song premiere!!!