Kongh - Counting Heartbeats

A few weeks back I reviewed a very interesting EP by the bipolar band Cleric. These lads at Sound Devastation Records have killer taste. I see on their site that they are also putting out the next effort by Fall of Efrafa. Awesome indeed. But now is the time (late time) for the Swedish trio Kongh, who late last year released this first full-length recording Counting Heartbeats. And though at a quick glance it may seem as if Kongh are simple doomsters we may be wrong to just tag them as that. In fact, these guys go for a pretty varied approach; one that for sure demands a full listen, and that for sure, also demands repeated spins.



As the label tags their styles as; doom/drone/post-metal/alt-metal, it is all surprisingly true. Counting Heartbeats goes through each one of those genres, not once, nor twice but repeated times through the course of the five songs contained here. And five songs isn’t just a bit of music anymore; Kongh is the type of band that takes its time stirring things up. They get to the boiling point, but man, they will make you wait and you’ll have a crushing time while at it. Think again; five songs, that is sixty-five minutes of dragging tempos, raw, loud but non-cookie monster vocals, soaring sludge riffage, giant drums, hypnotizing melodies, and the same angry mood presented over and over in several different ways.



These are songs filled with momentum. And unlike the music of so many post rock bands; there is nothing pretty about them. What is most remarkable is the band’s fluent transitions from one sub genre to another one. I know, I know. I, like everyone else, am getting sick of so many post rock and drone bands popping up everywhere, and producing the same peak and valley records (post rock) and abstract records (for drone) but don’t take Kongh for granted. This trio is the real thing. Their music makes sense.

(Taken from Deaf Sparrow)

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Tracklist

1. Pushed Beyond
2. Counting Heartbeats
3. Adapt the Void
4. Megaprimatus
5. Zihuatanejo

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