KINGCROW – The Persistence (2018)

Italians KINGCROW are about to release their new album “The Persistence” in a few days. In this blog we have been following the career of this talented six-piece because they’re one of the most innovative acts from the current Rock scene.
There’s nothing quite like a band that consistently delivers. Kingcrow is one of those bands that just keeps getting better. We’ve loved their last albums, but “The Persistence” takes it up a notch once again, different from the previous, as always.

If you’re new to Kingcrow, the band hails from Italy and consists of Diego Marchesi on vocals, Diego Cafolla and Ivan Nastasi on guitars, Thundra Cafolla on drums, Cristian Della Polla on keys, and Riccardo Nifosi on bass. Daniel Gildenlöw from Pain of Salvation also guests on one track.
These players are massively successful together, as you will note in the interplay between the roaring guitar work, the active bass lines, the thundering drums, and the atmospheric keys that wind in and around everything else.
These guys play so well together, and their minds seem united, especially on this album.

Kingcrow’s style is somewhere between melodic prog rock and progressive metal, but not your ‘typical’ progressive rock band by any means of imagination. With each release they have taken a step further away from their original metal roots, and now you can travel through a carefully crafted blend of styles, all perfectly working as unit.

Many of their songs are light and airy, with lots of ambience and atmosphere, and you will hear many keyboard and electronic accents that give the music more personality.
Other compositions rock harder and are pretty technical, though they never really get into “riff mode”, so I wouldn’t ever quite label them as prog metal. Still, some of their music is fairly uptempo, and the instrumentals hit hard and fast.

It would be hard to overstate the importance of an album’s first track, which serves to not only give the listener a first taste of the quality of the music they are consuming, but also helps to set the table in preparation for the rest of it, giving the listener an idea of what’s to come. With that in mind I can think of few opening tracks this year that top “Drenched”.
“Drenched” contains several interesting sections, all of which are masterfully executed. The introduction is ambient, leading into an high energy instrumental passage that gets the head banging. Then things are settled back down as we here the first lines from vocalist Diego Marchesi and once again build up more slowly and precisely around his first verse.

The next two tracks, “Closer” and “Everything Goes” (the chorus is absolutely emotional and glorious) continue on sounding very much like the Kingcrow we’ve experienced over the past two albums, but with a sharper point than ever before as the band has refined their sound to achieve new heights, musically and sonically.
“Folding Paper Dreams” is another low burning song with grit and melancholy. It feels desperate to stop the loss.

The second half of the CD seems to get even stronger. The title track arrives in progressive and dark fashion, rocking hard, but the vocal harmony in the second part is so beautiful and sincere.
“Every Broken Piece of Me” is a subtle song that ends up launching into a wonderfully shadowy instrumental with blunted keys and buzzing guitars. “Night’s Descending” features Daniel Gildenlöw on guest vocals, and is therefore understandably amazing. The interplay between Daniel’s awesomely restrained verses and Diego’s explosive emotions in the chorus is simply priceless.
Even so, “Father” might actually be my favorite on the album. Its high octane emotions catch me by surprise every time, and the amazing instrumental near the end solidifies its place in my mind.

It is nearly impossible to choose favorites on this album. “The Persistence” is incredibly consistent in quality, soaking you in emotion and melody from start to finish.
All throughout, the guitar work is impeccable, with wonderful soloing and dark riffing; the keys are glorious, with lots of atmosphere and a certain cinematic flair; and the rhythm section keeps things moving and interesting. Diego’s vocals top the package with soaring passion.

While I would recommend to anyone checking any of the last Kingcrow albums out, in this case there is no better place to start than the present, with “The Persistence” representing the band at their best.
Especially for those coming into the band new, I think they’re in for an extra treat given that the overall sound may very well represent a new find for them.
A very exciting, different, quite innovative album, perfectly rounded in 55 minutes.
Highly Recommended

01 – Drenched
02 – Closer
03 – Everything Goes
04 – Folding Paper Dreams
05 – The Persistence
06 – Every Broken Piece Of Me
07 – Devil’s Got A Picture
08 – Night’s Descending
09 – Father
10 – Perfectly Imperfect

Diego Marchesi – Lead & backing vocals
Diego Cafolla – Guitar & backing vocals
Ivan Nastasi – Guitar & backing vocals
Cristian Della Polla – Keyboards & synths
Riccardo Nifosì – Bass guitar
Thundra Cafolla – Drums & percussion
Daniel Gildenlöw – guest Vocals

PRE ORDER:
www.kingcrow.it/merchandising.asp
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