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Not a bad Progressive effort despite the overused slower tracks.-
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| Kruk: It Will Not Come Back |
Hard Rock, Progressive Rock, Space Rock
Metal Mind Records
August 2nd, 2011
CD:
- Intro - 0:26
- Now When You Cry - 5:09
- In Reverie - 5:51
- Imagination - 6:50
- Embrace Your Silence - 8:07
- Forever - 7:00
- Here On Earth - 7:36
- Cold Wall - 4:18
- Every Night - 5:15
- It Will Not Come Back - 12:30
- Simply the Best - 4:00
DVD:
- Paranormal Power Lasts
- Be a Dream
- The Guillotine
- Embrace Your Silence
- In Reverie
- Reality
- Lady Chameleon
- Knocking at Your Back Door
- Before He'll Kill You
- Child in Time
- Bonus Documentary - 7:17
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| Links |
| Review Information |
Release length: 1:06:57
Review posted on July 13th, 2011
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| | Overall Score: 6.5/10 |
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| Discography |
Discography covers all information available up to day of review and is updated if future albums are reviewed. |
| Full-Length(s): |
Before He'll Kill You (2009) • It Will Not Come Back (2011)
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| Review |
Kruk is a dominantly Hard Rock act that hails from Poland. Much of the material the group puts out comes off as a mixture of emotional yet modern sounding Hard Rock with a touch of early eighties, but is not afraid to add in a touch of old-school Heavy Metal to the mix. In 2009, the band stormed into the world with their debut release Before He'll Kill You. The response to this album was pretty grand, throwing this act into the spotlight that acts like At Vance once stood at the forefront of. Two years later, the band returns with a new album titled It Will Not Come Back, an album featuring over sixty five minutes of powerful Rock tracks. But with that, one can't help but wonder how much of that, if any, ends up being filler or padding.
While much of this recording sounds like a cross between early Rock with psychadelic keyboards sometimes mixed with an early Judas Priest-like Metal edge, like with the first track "Now When You Cry", and a Progressive Rock balance to the mix frpom those same keyboards that jump into a sound that comes off more modern Space Rock then anything, the quality of the recording feels more modern then the music does. The quality is clear, but maybe a little too much as the songs can seem a bit sterile. "In Reverie", for example, is a decent song, but due to the cleaner quality and sounds from the instruments, it just doesn't sound as moving as it could be. The guitars still sound good for the style of music being played, and the bass is pretty dominant in this recording, though much louder and present then the bass kicks of the drum kit. The drums, of course, are nothing too special like the music, but they suit the song well and keep the beat steady. All of this works well with the soothing cleaning singing vocal approach to create a relaxing experience that has a little more of an emotional drive to it.
Of course many of the tracks on here move at a slower pace, and when things do pick up or become a little more technical from the simpler Hard Rock approach, such as during keyboard or guitar solos, it becomes a real treat to the listener's palette. This is basically how It Will Not Come Back starts up, though "Now When You Cry" has a more energetic performance that has a strong emotional atmosphere to it that bridges the gap between the early and Progressive Rock elements of the album with the early Heavy Metal influences for a great welcome and set up to the release that is bled into by the short and sweet "Intro" instrumental. This is the song that will get the listener hooked thanks to it's driving chugging guitar work and heavy focus on the bass pushing it along for the chorus and making it's presence felt like an early Iron Maiden track such as "Run to the Hills" would. Sadly, this is one of the few energetic tracks, and once "In Reverie" kicks in, it all does slow down and seem to emulate the approach to "In Reverie" with many tracks that follow.
This is about the time some of the material does start to feel like filler, but still comes off a bit too rich to be that. "Imagination" basically follows the same suit as "In Reverie", and just doesn't seem to want to end. It's near seven minute life span doesn't help either, and the music doesn't really offer much outside of simpler performances that do wind up become very bland. However the following track, "Embrace Your Silence", is the perfect mixture of emotionally driven Hard Rock and Progressive Rock in ballad form. The music is moving from start to finish, and is simply very catchy from start to finish with moving guitar and keyboard solos that work perfectly with the slower, sorrow filled moving track that will find your foot tapping and head bobbing along as you connect with the track and hang on every note that is played. The only issue here is that you sit and wait for the vocals to really get belted out, but they never do and feel restrained in an effort to retain that stylish yet darker edge the music has until the very end when an Ours style harmonized yell is let out, though this more enthusiastic approach you've been waiting for simply does not fill the expectations since it's only once and near the end of it's just over eight minute lifespan.
But of all the songs on the effort, it's "Here On Earth" that is far from enjoyable. The song comes off a bit like something you would expect to hear Meat Loaf perform, but the keyboards used here bring up eerie shadows of Phantom of the Opera, as well as a creepy Horror Punk influence mixed with something a band like Europe would pull off specifically for a live show. The song itself is not that enjoyable outside of the haunting atmosphere, and you quickly just want to hit the skip button. Of all the filler tracks on this release, many of them still have a strong enough presentation that you could sit through it without really feeling let down, but this track seems to only have the keyboards working for it, which don't sound too original, and everything else just feels lifeless and tacky, as well as just out of place given the rest of the release.
The album technically ends with the title track "It Will Not Come Back", which is a twelve and a halk minute song that really pushes the Progressive Rock elements of the band, and gives the album a second life with music that sounds rich, a little more energetic for it's slower pace, and full of life to break up the monotony of the constant slower paced tracks that try to take the ballad approach into a typical Rock song and eventually just get overused and tiring. This track manages to incorporate that slower pace well with some of the more traditional early Rock 'n Roll ideas and even a touch of the early Heavy metal approach the band utilized during "Now When You Cry". There's a good amount of things going on throughout the song, and from to start to finish it's actually quite enjoyable and makes for a very satisfying longer track that builds upon itself from the very start in a manner that one would expect longer tracks from a band that shows any signs of a Progressive foundation. But, while this song becomes the wake up call needed, though closing the album instead of highlighting it prior to a fantastic close, there's actually one more track on here, which is a bonus track attributed to Tina Turner called "Simply the Best", which if you were alive in the nineties you've heard this song. It's not too different from the original, and it has more life and energy in it then half the other original tracks on here. Whether you love or hate the Tina Turner version, this rendition is catchy and upbeat, which makes it very hard to dismiss due to it's Hard Rock edge and heavier music.
But that's not all. It Will Not Come Back also includes a one hundred minute DVD. Included on this disc is a full live performance from the band in a smaller venue with a decent amount of fans there. The atmosphere of the show itself is the same as the music being played, which is a little more emotional and one-on-one given the intimate venue setting, and generally darker, though the stage has some good lighting that is bright, but much of the colored lights are deeper and give a darker appearance to the stage. The production on the disc is not bad, and while there's a good amount of knee jerk scene changes throughout, there are times that those changes are slower and let you comprehend what exactly is going on. The set list includes material from the band's first album, as well as some newer songs including "In Reverie". The DVD title screen allows you to choose which of the ten songs in this set you want to jump to, or just start from the beginning, though you'll immediately notice a few typos in the song names such as "Knocking At You Back Door". There's also a bonus documentary you can choose at the bottom of that song selection screen, which you'd imagine would be the longer aspect of this, but it really isn't and clocks in a little over seven minutes. The narration to the documentary is in the band's native tongue, so if you don't speak it, you're screwed since there are no subtitles included! So, basically this is a seven minute behind the scenes documentary that you will have no idea what's going on with it thanks to no subtitles. While the concert is done nicely despite the constant camera changes, the DVD makes for a decent bonus to the album, but at the same time just feels a little half-assed with it's presentation and lack of consideration to non Polish speaking areas and individuals.
It Will Not Come Back is not a bad album, but at the same time it's not the greatest one you'll hear. The band has a strong idea for the release and the music they play, and the intimate atmospheres are captured well. However, there's too many slower songs that just feel and sometimes can sound the same as the previous track. But, even those filler songs cme off solid outside one or two songs on the effort, and the closing title track is phenomenal and what you would expect for a more Progressive act. The bonus DVD isn't the greatest, and unless you're really into Kruk, you won't care about the bonus documentary at all. The live performance, however, is well done and captures that emotional and dark aspect to the group's music. Fans of Progressive Rock in general will definitely find plenty of reasons to hang onto this effort and visit it many times after the initial spin, but thanks to the many slower tracks, it doesn't feel like it's as strong as it should be, and actually comes off a heavily restrained through much of it.
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