Album Type: Album
Date Released: 21st May 2015
Label: Self Released
'The Mountain Ghost' track Listing:
1.The Mountain Has Ghosts
2.The Feast of the Mountain Ghost
3.The Dance of the Mountain Ghost
4.The Death of the Mountain Ghost
Kylver is:
James Bowmaker (Bass)
Barry Mitcheson (Drums)
Neil Elliott (Hammond Organ, Keys)
Jonny Scott (Guitar).
Bio:
KYLVER (Pronounced: Kil-ver) is a four piece
progressive heavy rock/metal band coming out of Newcastle upon Tyne. The band
is made up of a bunch of mates that have a genuine love for music with a want
to create something that is both interesting and challenging to play.
Review:
Kylver
is a band from my home town of Newcastle Upon Tyne who I've been keeping a
close eye on. Friends of mine have told me that these guys are something else
on the live stage. I haven't seen these guys in action yet but that's all going
to change with their superb new album - The Mountain Ghost. A sprawling 40
minute odyssey that sees Kylver playing an experimental kind of Progressive
Rock/Post-Metal style hybrid.
What
makes this such a fantastic debut album is Kylver's fearless approach to music.
These guys show no fear as they blend different styles of music that will
impress the heck out of you. Opening track - The Mountain Has Ghosts - is a 14
minute plus epic that sees Kylver embrace the world of Post Metal/Post Rock
with hints of Math Rock and Doomy Atmospherics that becomes ever so creepy as
time passes by.
Imagine
if Pelican had taken a more direct Math Rock approach to their music and that's
where you end up with Kylver. It's purely an instrumental affair with different
noises and sound effects adding extra texture and groove. Kylver even find the
time to include 60s/70s style Organs and Keyboard which I didn't expect at all.
This song is a creepy and highly atmospheric dense affair as Kylver surrounds
your environment with subtle touches of doom and gloom. The remaining 3 songs
on the album follow the same hollow path as the opening track with The Mountain
Ghost leading you to a Feast, A Dance and its inevitable Death.
Kylver
have taken a more Progressive Rock approach especially with the structure of
all of the songs and have built Post-Metal theatrics on top of that. Second
track - The Feast Of The Mountain Ghost - has a more experimental vibe with
jagged guitars and hazy synths for a slight trippy feel. It's more of a slow
paced affair but still an intriguing journey to take especially when the
heavier riffs start to take over. I don't know how Kylver came up with the idea
to merge 60s/70s synths with Post-Rock/Post-Metal but it's a great idea that
pays huge dividends for the band. As Kylver may have ideas too big for their
station but you can't deny how wonderful the results sound.
The
other two songs - The Dance Of The Mountain Ghost and The Death Of The Mountain
Ghost - more than matches the excitement of the opening two tracks with Kylver
keeping you on the edge of your seat. The instrumental work is impressive
through out as is the use of the different noises to convey a world full of
danger. The 2nd half of the album is more Math Rock focused which gives Kylver
drummer - Barry - plenty of scope to show off and impress people with his
superb technical ability. OK, I've gone on long enough. The Mountain Ghost is a
stunning debut album that Kylver should be very proud of. Keep an eye out for
this band as I sense some exciting times ahead for these warped individuals.
Thanks
to Kylver for the promo. The Mountain Ghost will be available to buy on CD/DD from May 21st 2015.
Words
by: Steve Howe
For More Information:
