Customer Reviews

Down Below It's Chaos

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I guess it was inevitable. It's really f'ing hard to be an instrumental rock band with well mastered records, people seem to need lyrics for some reason and record companies demand extreme average rms volume levels.

In general people seem not to be able to listen to just music, they want to be distracted from it by some inane words they can sing along to. People have to fill up the world with words it seems. It bums me out because I love instrumental music, and wish there was more rock oriented stuff. I find lyrics distracting, and usually really stupid. I guess Kinski resisted the tide for as long as they could, but the concession is not complete as not every song has lyrics and not every moment of the songs that do are filled up with vocals.

As far as the mastering goes, it seems as if they have conceded some ground here as well. (for these comments to make sense you have to know what the loudness war is, go to wikipedia and search for 'loudness war'). Alpine static was mastered really well for a rock album. There were plenty of dynamics and the instruments sounded great and the drums had punch. Top notch. This album sees the mastering slipping into the realm of overcompression and brickwall limiting. So the cd sounds louder than Alpine Static at the same volume, but the drums have lost their punch and the instruments sound deadened and lifeless. Not that this album is an egregious example of an overloud rock cd, for that listen to Californication or Death Magnetic. It's just that it is not as good as the previous effort. To be fair, I haven't listened to the vinyl version, and vinyl is usually mastered with more dynamic range than cd's. Which is weird, because cd's have so much more potential than vinyl. So it looks like Kinski have decided to try to sell some more albums by doing what everyone else is doing. I hope it works for them.

Now onto the music. Like always, the big K provides its fans with some fantastic psyc oriented rock. These guys would have been kings had this been 1973. This stuff has pace, inventiveness, virtuosity, and great melodies aplenty. It stands with some of the best psych rock around, imo. They really deserve more acclaim (I think the addition of some tracks with vocals may help to achieve that).

Personally, I prefer Alpine Static. It sounds better, doesn't have distracting vocals, and is a really great piece of instrumental psych.

Down below it's Chaos falls somewhere between the sound of Airs Above Your Station and Alpine Static, yet doesn't quite live up to either of them. That's not to say I wouldn't recommend this album, there are some great songs here, but there seems to be a bit of filler on it also. "Crybaby Blowout" opens things up with a fuzzy Alpine Static sort of feel but somehow leaves you wishing there was more to it. Unlike their last album, this time around there are a few songs with vocals. "Passwords and Alcohol" which is an album highlight, has Chris Martin giving us a sort of Thurston Moore sound to his vocals. "Boy Was I Mad" which easily could have been a B-side from Airs Above Your Station, is easily the best track on the album. Other highlights include "Plan, Steal Drive", "Punching Goodbye Out Front" and "Silent Biker Type". While this may not be Kinski's best release, it's definitely worth picking up. Seeing them live is also a must so don't pass up the opportunity.

3 1/2 - I find Kinski's dense, intense music so damn interesting! It really pushes the boundaries of music. Their best trait is that they are so unique, and hard to nail down. That is less true on "Down Below It's Chaos." The vocals are sparse and unoffending, but it still represents a big departure for the band. It's really a nice compliment to their music, but kind of pulls the veil on the mystery that was Kinski. They sound just a little more like everyone else here, a little easier to define. I prefer the elusive, unpredictable quality of their previous albums.

A friend or two had tossed this name my way before, but I had just never picked anything up, for one reason or another. But today I was searching for something new, something to both fit and contradict (I know, I know) the rainy little day we're having right now. This. Was. Perfect. I sampled "Punching Goodbye Out Front" before grabbing the rest of it, and really liked what I was hearing. The opening guitar lick was fuzzy, buried under a mountain of gravel, but still raw and arresting. It burned along for a minute or so before shifting to this dynamic bluesy bridge that propelled the final minute of the track. That very moment was the one that concinved me to snatch the album up. The opening track was similar in in mood to "PGOF", but it was instrumental whereas the former had sparse vocals. I thought I was in for something great, so I stopped everything I was doing and just listened. The next track was less fire and more smolder, but wonderful all the same- especially when the percussion drops out for the two guitars to play off of each other. By the fourth track, "Boy, Was I Mad!", I had to check to make sure I was listening to the same album. It was dripping with menace, a single guitar under a layer of distortion plucking out this beautiful minstrel melody. The song shifts two or three more times, each one more intense than the last. I didn't have to listen to the rest of the album to know that this was a new favorite. The songwriting is wonderfully dynamic, the shifts are seamless, and the sparse lyrics are just prevelant enough to enhance but not distract from the music. I was looking for something to enhance my day, and this has. It's still gloomy outside and the sky is still milky-white, but I've got this to cut through a little bit of that haze for the moment.

If you listen and like this, you might wanna try a few others: Any album by Grails, particularly the "Take Refuge In Clean Living" EP. It lumbers along like a monster, but a very exotic, almost regal monster. And just for fun, take a listen to Lullabye Arkestra's "Ampgrave". Picture some superbly cheesy 70's slasher flick where demons and zombies overtake some whiskey-addled neon-lit bar - Lullabye Arkestra would have been the house band that night.

Believe this to be Kinski's third CD on the Sub Pop label. Just as good (if not, better) than any of their previous efforts, I thought. Noticed that 'Down Below It's Chaos' is a mostly instrumental release with a limited amount of vocals here and there. Starts off with a decent instrumental - "Crybaby Blowout". Next up is a all out heavy space rocker "Passwords & Alcohol", the well-played psychedelic "Day Room At Narita Int'l", the jamming "Boy Was I Mad", the guitar-ripping "Child Had A Train To Catch", the stunning atmospheric "Plan, Steal, Drive" (sort of reminds me of Hawkwind - possibly the disc's best cut altogether), the melodic "Punching Goodbye Out Front" and the fantastic nine-minute head-tripping epic - "Silent Biker Type". After my brain stops spinning and catches up with the rest of my body, I'm going to seriously attempt to listen to this CD again. Be sure to check out their My Space - couple of tunes here are played in their entirety. Highly recommended.