Formed in 2013 Kessler Effect released their debut EP in 2018, and following a short series of gigs across Ireland in 2019 and on September 30, 2020 published their last EP “Collisions.” The band’s sound revolves around Progressive Rock, mixing 70s influences, and others modern in the Heavy style. The self-produced album, contains 5 medium length tracks, characterized by a solid rhythmic session with supporting bass lines, good guitar phrasing and a full-bodied vocal. The “My Torture” opener begins with an atmospheric effect that immediately leaves room for a massive guitar riff and a powerful rhythm session. The 70’s influences can be sensed, more in the Hard Rock field than in Prog, with a vocal that is also decisive, while the guitar is the protagonist both in the riffs and in the solo inserts. “Shadow” is the longest track and begins with a softer guitar arpeggio and a warmer and more expressive vocal that alternates solo verses and choral openings. The rhythm session is a linear mid-tempo without many tempo changes, while the bass lines are more full-bodied especially in the second part. In the central part a keyboard solo, which, however, is not very incisive and too low in volume due to the choice of sounds or the mixing. Good basic ideas, in my opinion development should be improved. “Falafel” kicks off with a sound mix between bass and electric guitar, and then with a change to give life to a song in the style of Heavy Prog. The atmospheres are dark and the vocal is aggressive and with choral parts, the guitar is again master of the scene with riffs with Doom traits. The structure has some variation in time which improves its overall yield. “All Dogs (Are Good Boys)” is characterized by massive guitar riffs that also here alternate some traits close to Doom, however on the whole 70s-inspired. In the central part, a change takes us to an intricate guitar section and then starts again with power and also offers a pulled guitar solo. Too bad here too for the sound quality, because there are some interesting traits and ideas. This EP ends with the track “Quarantine” which is also the shortest, made up of layers of both clean and electric arpeggiated guitar and then close with an ambient outro. An EP that has some interesting ideas that could be developed better, giving more incisiveness to the tracks. The guitar is the protagonist and gives a heavier touch to the album, which, however, in my humble opinion should be improved in terms of sound, not always up to the standard of the proposed music. The starting points are there and with some tricks and more details it will certainly be possible to listen to interesting works from this band in the future.
Tracklist
1. My Torture (03:34)
2. Shadow (05:23)
3. Falafel (04:52)
4. All Dogs (Are Good Boys) (04:20)
5. Quarantine (02:47)
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