LPs
Jokes (2007)
I don’t really know how to start writing about The Kidcrash’s 2007 release Jokes. I could write an intro about the bands history (stale), some preluding words about the incurrence of the record and some statements of the band (maybe interesting, but too lavishly) or I could start off with a little genre definition and sweeping swipes at the MTV-emo generation who obviously knows a sh** about music (seriously, how pretentious would that be?). After all I decided to go without an introducing paragraph (besides the already existing one of course), only concentrating on the main thing this all will be about; the fabulous music you’ll find on this record. Be prepared.
It opens up with some of the most beautiful interacting guitars I’ve ever heard, the intro to “Turtlelephant”. From that point on you’ll experience the maybe best blend of mellow mid-west emo, rough but melodic skramz ala Daitro and more blustering contemporaries like Off Minor, whose eruptive character and everchanging quiet/loud sections present a formular that The Kidcrash will push to its limits during the 41 minutes of playing time. While the majority of the heavy sections are somewhat well-known but effective, with passioned screaming over dissonant chords tightened by poignant leads and sick drumming, the calmer parts and their resolution in eruptive bursts of crashing distortion are the highlight of the record and will hit you at least 3 times per song. No track relies on one hitting crescendo, on one climax that’s supposed to blow the listener out of the water. Instead they use the quiet/loud approach for a multifaceted rhythmic pathway that evolves the songs through beautiful melodic motifs as well as textured and harmonized modulations among the single instruments. Especially their apprehension of an inventive and sensible use of altered time signatures, that conclude the particular musically themes without ceasing the proceeding flow with start-stop breaks or weird transitions is sweeping, done in best math rock manner. Most prominent on closer listenings, the driving force behind this mathy character of The Kidcrash’s music is the colorful drumming, sounding uncommonly off-kilter while outlining likewise the rhythmical backbone and putting emphasis on unaccented notes to provide the songs with new dynamical spins. You'd almost think that the tripping drumming is merely juxtaposed to the perfectly intertwining guitars, rarely profound meshing but jointly rushing forward when the song picks up speed and intensity after trundling, guitar driven interludes.
While they manage it to range every instrument on the same level, The Kidcrash compounded in the vocals section; and really for the better. Keeping the screaming level relatively low in the mix, they only add it to intensify the impact of the heavy segments and exclude it from the softer arrangements, letting the beautiful compositions shine in their instrumental beauty. Due to the occurrence of many of such louder momentums, the scrubbing screams toe the line flawlessly into the complete works, not remaining as an extraordinary appearance that takes the spot as the songs peak by accident.
Lets conclude: Breathtaking, homogenous, coordinated, free-flowing, beautiful, exciting, appealing, balanced (I could go on for quite some time) emo that ditches in post-hardcore, math rock and screamo terrain at pleasure to provide itself with the momentary needed changes in sound. All its influences make Jokes a non-dreary and challenging-but-catchy collection of nine songs, whose richness of detail and countless subtle nuances give the record an impressive replay value. With some of the best-matched guitarists (check out the in reverb drenched guitar wankery in the one and a half minute instrumental “Kissed From a Roach On The Grave”), whose individual skill filter through on every occasion (the two-handed tapping parts in “Hypothetical Basking Shark” for instance), a killing drummer (he really is) and especially the ability to combine everything into a tight package, The Kidcrash set a landmark of an album that everybody into good music should check out. And for all those people justifiably claiming Gospel’s The Moon Is A Dead World as the best thing the emo genre has to offer: Be prepared for a change. Be prepared.
Tracklist:
01 - Turtlelephant
02 - The Ground Eats You
03 - Life Was Real, Vital, Urgent, Important
04 - Hypothetical Basking Shark
05 - Kiss from a Roach on the Grave
06 - Parrot's Just Don't Understand
07 - Ron Ghousley's Fucked Up Dream
08 - A Conduit Rather Than a Vault
09 - Swingsets and Frozen Grapes
Genre: Emo, Screamo, Post Hardcore, Math Rock
(41:38)
192 kBit/s
Preview:
New Ruins (2004)
New Ruins is some kind of a double-edged sword. Clearly showing off the talent and ability stored in The Kidcrash, it seems that they utilized it in a too forced and reckless approach. They merge skilled dual-guitar work and sophisticated drum patterns with obvious pop punk sensibilities, namely hook-driven song structures and corded up songwriting. While admittedly the technical aspects can’t prevent the songs from being typical pop punk affairs, The Kidcrash used them to jazz up the tracks with mathy riffing, tight drum fills and more compact vocalism/lyricism.
Containing melodic progressions that are catchy and easily accessible, appropriate varying rhythm figures and the driving force of the speeding guitars, New Ruins offers nine well-written songs that are entertaining and rocking from start to finish. Sure it can’t compare itself with the masterpiece that is Jokes, but it’s a great beginner record for people wanting to give the whole math rock thingy a first look, and a welcome change in the more and more stagnating genre that pop punk is today.
Some songs to check out: “Your Valley Is Our Volcano (Preview)”, “Scalpel Cuts Concrete” and "Drowning Swan’s Song”.
Tracklist:
01 - Your Valley Is Our Volcano
02 - Until the Light Kills the Film
03 - New Ruins
04 - Scalpel Cuts Concrete
05 - Gun at the Parade
06 - Afterburn of Being Born
07 - Talking Underwater
08 - Eyes That Never Hit the Sky
09 - Drowning Swan's Song
Genre: Pop Punk, Math Rock
(37:32)
192 kBit/s
Preview:
I don’t really know how to start writing about The Kidcrash’s 2007 release Jokes. I could write an intro about the bands history (stale), some preluding words about the incurrence of the record and some statements of the band (maybe interesting, but too lavishly) or I could start off with a little genre definition and sweeping swipes at the MTV-emo generation who obviously knows a sh** about music (seriously, how pretentious would that be?). After all I decided to go without an introducing paragraph (besides the already existing one of course), only concentrating on the main thing this all will be about; the fabulous music you’ll find on this record. Be prepared.
It opens up with some of the most beautiful interacting guitars I’ve ever heard, the intro to “Turtlelephant”. From that point on you’ll experience the maybe best blend of mellow mid-west emo, rough but melodic skramz ala Daitro and more blustering contemporaries like Off Minor, whose eruptive character and everchanging quiet/loud sections present a formular that The Kidcrash will push to its limits during the 41 minutes of playing time. While the majority of the heavy sections are somewhat well-known but effective, with passioned screaming over dissonant chords tightened by poignant leads and sick drumming, the calmer parts and their resolution in eruptive bursts of crashing distortion are the highlight of the record and will hit you at least 3 times per song. No track relies on one hitting crescendo, on one climax that’s supposed to blow the listener out of the water. Instead they use the quiet/loud approach for a multifaceted rhythmic pathway that evolves the songs through beautiful melodic motifs as well as textured and harmonized modulations among the single instruments. Especially their apprehension of an inventive and sensible use of altered time signatures, that conclude the particular musically themes without ceasing the proceeding flow with start-stop breaks or weird transitions is sweeping, done in best math rock manner. Most prominent on closer listenings, the driving force behind this mathy character of The Kidcrash’s music is the colorful drumming, sounding uncommonly off-kilter while outlining likewise the rhythmical backbone and putting emphasis on unaccented notes to provide the songs with new dynamical spins. You'd almost think that the tripping drumming is merely juxtaposed to the perfectly intertwining guitars, rarely profound meshing but jointly rushing forward when the song picks up speed and intensity after trundling, guitar driven interludes.
While they manage it to range every instrument on the same level, The Kidcrash compounded in the vocals section; and really for the better. Keeping the screaming level relatively low in the mix, they only add it to intensify the impact of the heavy segments and exclude it from the softer arrangements, letting the beautiful compositions shine in their instrumental beauty. Due to the occurrence of many of such louder momentums, the scrubbing screams toe the line flawlessly into the complete works, not remaining as an extraordinary appearance that takes the spot as the songs peak by accident.
Lets conclude: Breathtaking, homogenous, coordinated, free-flowing, beautiful, exciting, appealing, balanced (I could go on for quite some time) emo that ditches in post-hardcore, math rock and screamo terrain at pleasure to provide itself with the momentary needed changes in sound. All its influences make Jokes a non-dreary and challenging-but-catchy collection of nine songs, whose richness of detail and countless subtle nuances give the record an impressive replay value. With some of the best-matched guitarists (check out the in reverb drenched guitar wankery in the one and a half minute instrumental “Kissed From a Roach On The Grave”), whose individual skill filter through on every occasion (the two-handed tapping parts in “Hypothetical Basking Shark” for instance), a killing drummer (he really is) and especially the ability to combine everything into a tight package, The Kidcrash set a landmark of an album that everybody into good music should check out. And for all those people justifiably claiming Gospel’s The Moon Is A Dead World as the best thing the emo genre has to offer: Be prepared for a change. Be prepared.
Tracklist:
01 - Turtlelephant
02 - The Ground Eats You
03 - Life Was Real, Vital, Urgent, Important
04 - Hypothetical Basking Shark
05 - Kiss from a Roach on the Grave
06 - Parrot's Just Don't Understand
07 - Ron Ghousley's Fucked Up Dream
08 - A Conduit Rather Than a Vault
09 - Swingsets and Frozen Grapes
Genre: Emo, Screamo, Post Hardcore, Math Rock
(41:38)
192 kBit/s
Preview:
New Ruins (2004)New Ruins is some kind of a double-edged sword. Clearly showing off the talent and ability stored in The Kidcrash, it seems that they utilized it in a too forced and reckless approach. They merge skilled dual-guitar work and sophisticated drum patterns with obvious pop punk sensibilities, namely hook-driven song structures and corded up songwriting. While admittedly the technical aspects can’t prevent the songs from being typical pop punk affairs, The Kidcrash used them to jazz up the tracks with mathy riffing, tight drum fills and more compact vocalism/lyricism.
Containing melodic progressions that are catchy and easily accessible, appropriate varying rhythm figures and the driving force of the speeding guitars, New Ruins offers nine well-written songs that are entertaining and rocking from start to finish. Sure it can’t compare itself with the masterpiece that is Jokes, but it’s a great beginner record for people wanting to give the whole math rock thingy a first look, and a welcome change in the more and more stagnating genre that pop punk is today.
Some songs to check out: “Your Valley Is Our Volcano (Preview)”, “Scalpel Cuts Concrete” and "Drowning Swan’s Song”.
Tracklist:
01 - Your Valley Is Our Volcano
02 - Until the Light Kills the Film
03 - New Ruins
04 - Scalpel Cuts Concrete
05 - Gun at the Parade
06 - Afterburn of Being Born
07 - Talking Underwater
08 - Eyes That Never Hit the Sky
09 - Drowning Swan's Song
Genre: Pop Punk, Math Rock
(37:32)
192 kBit/s
Preview:
Splits
- Misspellings Split 5'' w/ Arse Moreira (2007)
- Split 10" w/ Coffin Dancer (2007)
- Heavy Nugs And Heady Chugs' Split 7" w/ L'Antietam (2008)
The Kidcrash's songs on the splits range from short screamo attacks ("Pig Hands") to lenghty epics ("Water Weed"), picking up the sound the band left off with the glorious album Jokes.
Genre: Emo, Screamo, Post Hardcore, Math Rock
192 kBit/s
Tracklist Demo:
01 - A Conduit Rather Than a Vault
02 - Life Was Real, Vital, Urgent, Important
03 - The Ground Eats You
04 - Hypothetical Basking Shark
05 - Swingsets and Frozen Grapes
Genre: Emo, Screamo, Post Hardcore, Math Rock
(30:57)
192 kBit/s
Tracklist EP:
01 - Untitled I
02 - Untitled II
03 - Untitled III
Genre: Emo, Hardcore
(16:42)
192 kBit/s
The Kidcrash are Alex, John, Kevin, Buster.
Myspace
Last.fm
Buy/Support/Donate
Denovali
Download Page
Genre: Emo, Screamo, Post Hardcore, Math Rock
192 kBit/s
EPs & Demos
- Demo CDR (2006)
- I Haven't Had A Date In 4 Years Goldie Hawn Goldie Hawn Goldie Hawn EP (2005)
Tracklist Demo:
01 - A Conduit Rather Than a Vault
02 - Life Was Real, Vital, Urgent, Important
03 - The Ground Eats You
04 - Hypothetical Basking Shark
05 - Swingsets and Frozen Grapes
Genre: Emo, Screamo, Post Hardcore, Math Rock
(30:57)
192 kBit/s
Tracklist EP:
01 - Untitled I
02 - Untitled II
03 - Untitled III
Genre: Emo, Hardcore
(16:42)
192 kBit/s
The Kidcrash are Alex, John, Kevin, Buster.
Myspace
Last.fm
Buy/Support/Donate
Denovali
Download Page
