Kulk - Here Lies Kulk
Over the last few years Jade and Thom of Kulk have steadily built up a reputation for making abrasive noise rock, with a string of tracks released to support this, and they have very much been a live tour de force. This debut LP is still VERY noisy, and will definitely have ear drums vibrating, but overall the LP showcases a much more rounded sound, bringing in elements of psych, stoner, doom and metal to add to the more primal rock previously heard.
A Happy Death opens the album with swirling synths and garage rock, becoming a psychedelic head trip, and is a genuinely great album opener. All albums should start with a statement track, and that’s exactly what we have here.
My Fair Neighbour is more on the stoner/doom tip and the band slowly bludgeon the listener into submission – being bludgeoned never sounded so good! Then, after easing you in over the first 2 minutes, A Long Time fully drops the hammer with a wall of noise fuzz guitar assault.
Whilst there is a whole lot of distorted and sludgy fuzz guitar going on here, there is also lots of space to breathe, those spaces kept ticking by chugging drums and more understated guitar playing.
Slaughterhouse V is a monster of a tune, possibly the heaviest on the album, moody as hell, with drums slowly hammering the tune along, guitar wailing and guttural, effect drenched, vocals. I’m not sure if Kulk do singles, but if they do then this is the one!
The riff on Giallo is almost sabbath like, but as with a lot of the album, whilst you can hear influences coming through, it resolutely ploughs its own furrow. Make no mistake this is a Kulk album!
A big shout must also go to Rum Records for the mix of this record, it sounds absolutely huge, and there will be many bands on a much bigger budget that won’t get close to this quality.
Over 8 tracks and just shy of 45 minutes Kulk have produced a genuinely great debut LP. It just seems a huge shame in the current circumstances that we are all going to have to wait a while before we get to hear these songs live.
