The rolling sound of the coming apocalypse
Kongh is not a band for listeners without patience. Counting the Heartbeats is full of long songs that sometimes take a while to get to the point, if there even is a point. This is the epic sound of Streetcleaner-era Godflesh with a healthy dose of early ISIS and Neurosis.
Counting the Heartbeats is five tracks of crushing, bleak, profoundly heavy music that is sure to satisfy doom fans. Unlike many other bands of similar sound, Kongh aren't afraid to pick up the tempo. The opening track, “Pushed Beyond” opens at what could be considered break-neck speed compared to any of their post-metal/doom/sludge contemporaries. Have no fear though; track two, the title track “Counting Heartbeats,” lumbers out of the gate at a lurching, near painfully slow tempo that crawls along slow enough to make Nyarlathotep proud. The tune descends into an empty soundscape that drags the listener down, and just when all seems lost, the guitars rumble back into existence, shattering the near silence.
Kongh has been unfairly compared to bands like Cult of Luna and that is pretty far off the mark. Kongh creates cold, barren, empty washes of sound. This is a whole different feeling from that invoked by CoL. It’s almost a polar opposite. Kongh makes music that drags the listener to a dark place and leaves them there. Sure some of the longer parts feel a little dragged out and could be expanded upon or possibly condensed in places, but that might not be what is being conveyed here. These are long songs, not one of them is under ten minutes. This is meant to be an experience. This is the sound of the apocalypse.
| Reviewer: Dave Warren Added: November 16th 2007 |
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