Kyrbgrinder Chronicles of a Dark Machine Review by Gary Hill
This is a power trio from the UK. They remind me of Living Colour quite a bit. King’s X is another valid reference point. This is very much metal, though. That makes it rock harder and heavier than either of those bands.
This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2015 Volume 5 at lulu.com/strangesound.
Track by Track Review
Slipping Away
This is definitely modern metal. It’s high energy and pretty catchy. There is a great heavy crunch at play here. In some ways the vocal arrangement reminds me a bit of Living Colour.
Captain America The general musical concept isn’t really changed here. I love this smoking hot tune, though. The chorus is extremely melodic, really.
Kill Them All More purely metal, this thing really rocks. It’s definitely got a lot of that Living Colour vibe, though. I love the soaring melodic guitar solo.
Egocentric Suicide In some ways this takes us some definite new directions. There are some technical metal movements here. This is screaming hot, but also very complex. It’s one of my favorites pieces of the disc.
Oxygen Although this isn’t a big change from the format, it’s another screaming hot tune. There are some mellow moments here, though, that do represent definite variety.
Taking Control The instrumental section on this piece is awesome. That’s particularly true of the guitar solo. In some ways I’m reminded of a heavier King’s X here.
I Know Why If the last song made me think of King’s X, this one really does. It’s like a cross between modern metal, King’s X and Living Colour. It has a great groove and some catchy hooks.
I Feel Blue There are some epic metal elements here. Still, it grooves in similar ways as the rest of the disc.
Take Your Soul This really screams. The instrumental section on this is a big change. There are some female vocals, too.
Chronicles of a Dark Machine The title track is a melodic metal instrumental. It’s cool cut and a big change.
