Well, here it is, four songs from the depths of Hell, ready to take your black heart and melt your face off. The title song is for me one of the best on this release, kinda reminding me of Japanese Balzac in vocal lines and melodies. Production is gritty, diy and murky, kinda brings that vibe of darkness in the music, but also melancholy and melody. The Dark Passenger is a song with more of a metal vibe, I can even hear some goth influences in the midst of guitar work through the song structure. I must also commend clever use of samples on this record, I love that if they are done and used with style. Burking Method is for me best song besides above mentioned title song, having that awesome melancholic and dark main guitar melody combined with harsh sung vocals, killer song! Blood Spell brings back the horrorpunk singing along with many ooo parts and reminds me why I love this genre of music so much! So, go write to the guys and support them, you will not be sorry when you hear the e.p.
8 Up Records is a great record label and this Halloween they released free compilation with nice horrorpunk bands on it, delivering their goods.
I remember how I loved compilations while growing up in the nineties snail mail tape trading days, with fanzines and flyers for gigs being late for couple of weeks hehe. But, that had its charms, waiting for the mailman and that package envelope when it arrived, all the excitement. Also, compilations helped me discover some bands who later became my close friends and my favorite bands. This one contains 20 songs, some being better, some being a bit less better depending on your personal musical taste. This is all punk, horrorpunk or death rock. The bands that are just to my personal taste on this one are RatBatSpider, Dead End Lane, Despised NJ, The Haunting, but this compilation is full of great horrorpunk music and new bands for you to discover, and it is on donation or free. Thanks so much to 8 Up Records for releasing this beauty, it really made my day.
Robby Bloodshed is in no way stranger to the pages of Kraykulla. This New Jersey based artist has already graced the pages of my zine when I reviewed his last record a while ago. Now, it took two years to prepare the world for releasing these monster babies. Robby Bloodshed does such fantastic music, his work is original horror punk rock, ultra melodic and having that vibe I miss so much in nowadays scene. It reminds me of the original work Nim Vind does with his music, yet they are both different each in his own unique way. This record owes equal to Misfits or Blitzkid legacy as also the glamour of Queen. From the anthem like The Last Grin to piano pop infused Dying Is Easy, this is a record that just invites you and makes you listening to it again and again. Also, Robby paid beautiful homage to late and never forgotten Freddy Mercury with superb rendition of It´s a Hard Life on this record.
The lyrics are not horror per se, like in many other horrorpunk bands, but they are rather personal, every boy and ghoul can relate to in the pictures this lyrics provide and some of them really made my skin crawl with goosebumps how good they are. Almost like they remind you that real horrors await in real life you have to face and deal with it every day. The vocal lines, melodies and backing vocal harmonies are sweet and take you to another level of mind scape and provide for you a sweet refuge while this record lasts. This record is a keeper, from light Everything to night colored Fly By Night it is too hard to say which my personal favorites are because this whole release is probably contender for one of the best this year.
KRAYKULLA-WEBZINE 