In Norse mythology, the Kraken was a sea monster. A mega-sized octopus that would terrorise sailors and imperil ships. Kings are of course powerful and majestic, they have an air of regal grace. This makes King Kraken the ideal name for a band stepping into the Viking metal arena. But, if you have a great name, you have to back it up with great music. So, grab your broadsword, strap on your codpiece and immerse yourself in their new album ‘March Of The Gods’.
King Kraken love riffs, their music sits on the line between hard-rock and metal with what you might call a ‘classic’ sound. No, they’re not doing anything novel, or even forward-thinking, that means they have to do it well. They have to live up to that name. They have to be good. Their debut album ‘MCLXXX’ proved that they had the chops, this is album number two and it’s playing in the same sandbox. It’s straightforward, energetic and propulsive and easily hits the benchmark.
All the songs are built around rock solid riffs, strong vocals and a winning combination of tasteful, restrained licks and wild, unrestrained solos from lead guitarist Adam Healey. It’s a sound you could compare to early Soundgarden, Iron Maiden, Mastodon or Killswitch Engage, and while none of these comparisons are entirely accurate, they’re not bad comparisons either. It has a broad appeal, especially with its no-frills, hard-rock momentum and sturdy song construction. That said, there’s some striking guitarwork on display such as the wild pinch-slides that give ‘Berserker’ it’s frenetic energy or the immense shred guitar solo that defines ‘March Of The Gods’; an unhinged display of fretwork that’s so impressive it leaves no doubt as to why it lent its name to the album.
At the album’s mid-point ‘Hero’ offers a welcome change of pace, while following it up with the more contorted ‘Vigilante’ widens the record’s scope without compromising its raw power. Any song is going to struggle under the weight of being called ‘Magnum Opus’ but this has the good grace to be built around a suitably impressive riff. Ending the album with the stunning ‘Under The Sun’ leaves the album on a pleasingly majestic note.
Vocalist Mark Donoghue has a strong voice and a great tone that meshes well with the music. He leans on notes in a way that sounds nuanced while always feeling powerful and has a way of nudging notes in the right direction so while not being a great vocalist he’s an extremely effective one, ideal for this type of music and putting in solid work on all the songs here. While the power ballad ‘Hero’ gives him a little extra space to show his chops it’s the slightly grander closing track ‘Under The Sun’ where he really impresses. It’s a quietly thrilling vocal. This slightly understated approach makes him an important piece of the ensemble rather than dominating it, and this reveals why the band works so well. Each part as important as the other, they function as a well-oiled-machine, and this is the band’s greatest strength. In order to exploit that, they have worked with producer Romesh Dodangoda. With his Grammy nominations and Who’s Who of production credits, he’s ideal for capturing the band’s straightforward, powerful sound; that’s exactly what you’re getting here – this was a great choice.
The thing about Viking metal is that it’s very masculine – now that isn’t a problem, except when it gets co-opted by right-wing fetishists – but it does have a certain aesthetic, one that completely misunderstands, or at least completely misrepresents, what actual Vikings were like. Thus, it’s obsessed with the idea of Vikings rather than actual Vikings – and of course, that idea is of rippling warlike men going about their business in the most masculine way possible. While there’s nothing inherently wrong with this – so long as it’s not causing harm – and it is art after all, it’s worth mentioning because this is an album that’s very into it. Most obviously there are references to ‘blood and steel’ and the song ‘Hero’ is entirely about fathers. Indeed, it’s difficult to tell if the album includes a song called ‘Berserker’ because doing so is mandatory for this type of music, or if it’s just the result of drawing from a limited pool of inspirations. A small mercy then that there’s no reference to Ragnarok (although Valhalla does get namechecked). That said, the delightfully titled ‘Chainsaw Saviour’ shows they do have interesting ideas and don’t take themselves too seriously.
A few years ago, there was a masculine-coded advertising campaign that claimed the product ‘Does exactly what it says on the tin.’. This is an ideal way to describe King Kraken’s work and they live up to their name. ‘March Of The Gods’ is a sturdy, reliable, quality product. Like its tentacles around you, it’s gripping.
IAN KENWORTHY