Devil's Gate Music
Related Articles
Salisbury-based rockers Kiss The Gun return with album number two; ‘We See You’, the first to feature new vocalist Abigail Austin.
Featuring a darker sound than debut album ‘Nightmares’, ‘We See You’ is an ambitious, lengthy album. An overall running time that just misses the fifty-minute mark, nine tracks in total, with five of them each surpassing five minutes in length. Loads and I mean loads of great playing from the band means that the songs never drag, and in the case of the longest track of the nine; ‘What We’ve Become’, the seven minutes fly by in a heartbeat thanks to some inspired arrangements and heaps of gritty guitar riffs. It’s easy to see why this one was chosen as the first single to be lifted from the album; it’s dark, atmospheric, and tells a great story. At times some of the guitar hooks transport the listener back in time to the first few spins of Deep Purple’s comeback album ‘Perfect Strangers’’ Listen to when drummer Rob Taylor locks into a groove with lead guitarist Gerry Hearn as the subtle background arrangements bring a mysterious air to the track – classic Purple my good man – magic stuff indeed.
Likewise, ‘Enter The Gate’ has a stellar Purple-esque intro and with its slow-building groove, it would be a fantastic set-opener. Vocalist Abigail Austin plays it cool on this one with a rather lovely, almost spoken-word, vocal delivery which works well. If Kiss The Gun opt for a different track to kick off the live shows (when they DO return) then chances are it would be the driving-rock stylings of album opener ‘Flight Of The Phoenix’. Great pacing throughout, peppered with dazzling guitar work, and a vocal performance from Austin which shows great range and variety. This continues throughout the album, especially during ‘Emergency’ which slightly drops the classic rock approach for a hint of symphonic metal. At times it’s Joe Lynn Turner-era Rainbow, other times it’s shades of a band such as Visions Of Atlantis. To an extent, ‘Beyond The Ship’ keeps up the symphonic elements, but with a lighter touch thanks in main to the Toto-like intro, whereas ‘Breaking The Chains’ is more of a traditional metal feel, thanks to the chugging, beefy twin guitars.
If you have a hankering for some quality hard rock/metal with oodles of guitar riffs and solos (without any shredding), then this is the album for you.
Connect with Kiss The Gun, here.
Review – Dave
