ALBUM REVIEW: Kidneythieves – The Invisible Plan
Published on October 26, 2011 by Dave Sutton · No Comments
In 1998 Kidneythieves released their debut album Trickster, a solid effort delivering eleven tracks of industrial-fuelled rock. Musically, the heavy guitars and bass combined with an array of fiendish electronics could draw comparisons with other industrial bands such as Nine Inch Nails, but ultimately Kidneythieves clawed into their own niche, sharing a style with many other bands, but harnessing their own individual sound.
Part of what made them stand out from the crowd was Free Dominguez’s distinctive, soothing voice, which fit perfectly with the music, creating a strong emotional lure in front of the snarling metal beast at her back. Having said that, her vocals can all too readily turn from angelic to dangerous, twisting in an instant when the song demands it.
Four years later, in 2002, Kidneythieves followed up their admirable first release with a second album: Zerøspace. This blew Trickster away, offering an even better mix of rock guitars, compelling electronics and again Free’s wonderful vocals. The album was given more depth by the sweet acoustic track Serene Dream, as well as the ethereal industrial soundscapes of Arsenal and Placebo, which contrasted nicely against the angular, distorted aggression found on many of the album’s other tracks.
After such a strong release, it is maybe a little odd that the band didn’t try to capitalise on that by producing another album soon after. The third album eventually arrived last year. Called Trypt0fanatic, it (despite the gap of eight years) continued, in many ways, where the band had left off with Zerøspace, although it felt that in the years between releases they had honed their sound and the eleven tracks on offer held more power than ever, even the gentler songs showing an assured musical swagger.
This time the band have returned with a quick follow-up release, the new EP, The Invisible Plan, arriving not much more than a year after the release of their 2010 album. The EP continues the powerful sound found on Trypt0fanatic, the band sounding more comfortable and confident with their sound than ever and Free’s vocals as strong, passionate and emotive as always.
It’s hard to pick highlights when there isn’t a weak moment to be found during the five track EP. The title track maybe stands out as being a little “punchier” than the rest with a very addictive use of synths given a great hook by the bursts of distorted guitar and fast-paced drumbeat. The lyrics here are also some of the band’s strongest.
Floating Angels also stands out for its mellow sections, offering the quietest moments on the album. This isn’t to say it’s a soft track overall though, as the soothing start soon turns into a pounding chorus and the second half of the song erupts, the quiet/loud dynamic proving extremely potent with Free’s passionate cries over the wall of noise being one of the strongest sections on the EP.
This is an excellent collection of songs. Kidneythieves are one of the best bands out there for combining wonderful keyboard electronics with heavy bass and distorted guitars and here, as on Trypt0fanatic, they seem to have got the formula just right and, as previously stated, if the music alone wasn’t reason enough, the distinctive and powerful voice of Free Dominguez definitely makes this a band worth listening to.
Clocking in at just over twenty minutes, it’s easy to say the downside here might be that it isn’t longer, but we can only hope that the band get to work on more music like this sooner rather than later. You can get The Invisible Plan from the band’s official store – and, if you haven’t already, you might want to grab a copy of Trypt0fanatic whilst you’re at it.
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