Los Angeles rock trio Kyng has made waves across the scene with their brand of straight forward, gimmick free, hard rock sound that has been a breath of fresh air within a glut of either retro whatever or (fill in the blank) core music that has a cooler tag than the music they produce.
Burn The Serum (Razor and Tie) are eleven tunes that hit hard upon first listen while maintaining its melodic aspects at the same time. Musically, its mash up of heavy Sabbath-driven riffs with melodies resembling classic Soundgarden and the occasional fast tempo-ed metallic parts, without attempting to nosedive completely towards either a desert rock or grunge direction.
Vocalist Ed Veliz’s singing makes the real difference on Burn The Serum, as his vocals work well with their energetic sound. Songs like ‘Big Ugly Me’ and the acoustic song ‘Paper Heart Rose’ showcase a different side of Kyng, with his strong vocal performances blending in well with the music. Plus the fact that they are a trio is even more amazing, as they sound much bigger than what they produced on this record.
Working with Reverend Jim Rota (Fireball Ministry) this time around helped elevate their sound from the debut, and sound a lot more mature as well. Songs like ‘Lost One’ and ‘Electric Halo,’ display back to the roots of rock music, without compromising anything along the way.
Overall, it isn’t a fluke that Kyng has received all of these high praises from the likes of James Hetfield (Metallica) and Rex Brown (Kill Devil Hill). Burn The Serum is an awesome rock record that is the missing in the void that is the music scene today. It deserves a lot more attention and their luck could soon change.
9/10
REI NISHIMOTO