Kowloon Walled City blew me away when I saw them two nights in a row. Once at a small dive bar in Long Beach. The next in front of about 1,000 people opening for Neurosis. In both shows, their demeanor was almost identical. They are a very unassuming band. But this simplicity is also part of their brilliance. I wrote a review of their previous release Grievances. And when it came time to write a new review for one of their albums, I was shocked that it had been 6 years. A very quiet six years, with scattered shows.
This silence was in part to an uncertainty of the band’s future, which tends to happen when your main songwriter has writer’s block. And with the release coming when it did, it is possible to assume that the pandemic/lockdown could have played the role of the muse, like it did for so many others. If that is the case, I wouldn’t know. Because unlike many bands who came back flashy, swinging, inspired to try a new sound…. Kowloon came back exactly as before.
This new release contains 7 songs that could have been on either of their previous two albums. No clean vocals added, or female vocals…. No crazy times or song structures….no blatant song lyrics calling out specific people or events. It was as if everything we had been through in life had never happened. Just like it didn’t matter to them whether they played in front of 10 people or 1,000. They give you their sound. And that’s not such a bad thing.
In my previous review I explained what makes their sound so unique. Punk sensibility with a sludge/doom/post metal (whatever you want to call it) sound. No crazy light shows or song lengths. No endless tunnels of reverb and delay. And yet, despite their simple arrangements (2 guitars and bass playing slightly different things at the same time, they way Slint did on Spiderland), it is there unique use of space between notes that creates the atmosphere. Even though all the instruments are dry, you still feel like you could be falling as you wait for the next hit.
The title tracks opens by trudging along, as if the chugging were to mimic the lyrics of just passing through life (I don’t have the lyrics written down anywhere so my interpretations could be flawed). Though after a minute, it quickly rushes you to your first bit of soft guitars, a dynamic that despite how often it gets used, never overstays its welcome. Dynamics are after all what this band is all about. That if anything, is their only flex.
“Utopia” is a darker tune with its incredible bass tone, apocalyptic/lost in the wilderness like lyrics, and use of occasional feedback. After a brief soft section, it hits with an epic ending. “Oxygen Tank” on the other hand takes its time to build up, showing off the wonderful DIY production. Punchy drums, upfront bass, just enough room to breathe on the guitars so they don’t muddle the mix, and vocals that always feel on the brink of distorting right out of the speaker. The build up payoffs off with the closest the band has gotten to a normal chorus (“you never wanted to escape!”). Definitely a highlight.
“You Had a Plan” is the closest the band has come to a ballad. Heavy guitars don’t come in until around the 3:30 mark, the music takes over from there, and then the vocals throw in some powerful lines at the end. The song shows the band’s restraint while never conforming to singing when it gets soft.
“Splicing” might be my favorite from the album with its simple but effective bass lines, lyrics, and melodic (while still slightly dissonant) guitar lines. It has a standout lyric “through the haze, like a pulse, you sang”, a build up in an odd time signature, and an abrupt ending.
“When We Fall Through the Floor” musically might feel like more of the same by this point, but it makes up for it with so many memorable lyrics, so you can’t help but headbang as Scott yells, “What’s hidden in the floor?!”
“Lampblack” is a great closer, starting off with the lyric “One last thought” before closing with the line “You want to feel like you’re going home”. There is very little fluctuation in this song and is probably the most jam-like song they’ve done. Aside from the soft breaks, it stays on its main riff before the song ends and fades away.
Like their stage presence, very little attention is forced towards the album. It comes, it goes, and doesn’t over stay it’s welcome. In fact, after 6 years, a 32 minute album is kind of surprising. Most bands would feel obligated to switch things up, so something big, surprise their fans.
But Kowloon Walled City is perfectly happy to do what they’ve been doing. And their fans are perfectly happy to hear more of that. It was almost underwhelming upon first listen, but I should have seen that it’s not about what’s expected. And upon my third listen, I knew it was exactly what it was needed to be. Great lyrics. Great music. And a band that sounds like no other. Why then, would you want them to conform to the trends? Doesn’t matter anyway.
They won’t.
(All pictures curtesy of the band’s social media pages, and websites selling their merch. If you like the album, support the band by purchasing a physical copy of it!)
View of the Sunrise 