A Kid Hereafter In The Grinding Light

A Kid Hereafter...

Written by: PP on 06/02/2008 03:16:49

A lot of our Danish readers will probably still have the name A Kid Hereafter in fresh memory, considering tracks from their electronica flavored indie rock/pop punk album \"Rich Freedom Flavor\" have been a frequent sight on the music channels and the air waves of the country. For the non-Danes, however, here\'s a short introduction: Think Brandtson, slap on some Wheatus / Weezer / The Raveonettes influence, a singer who sounds like he\'s in his early teens, and you\'re pretty close. Now what\'s interesting about this band is that during their poppy live shows they\'d play for about an hour\'s worth of material from their albums, and in the end engage in a 5 minute grindcore session. Yeah, you read right, grindcore, probably the exact opposite of their normal sound. Quite a few people really enjoyed these sessions so the band figured what the heck, lets start a side project, call it A Kid Hereafter In The Grinding Light, and to confuse everyone even more, title the debut album \"A Kid Hereafter...\".

Fast forward to about next Monday, and every music store in Denmark will stock 30 tracks worth of solid grindcore written by a trendy indie rock band. It goes without saying that grindcore enthusiasts will have low expectations from the beginning. However, to the band\'s immense credit, \"A Kid Hereafter...\" is in many places a shitload better than any grindcore band that I can come to think of from the top of my head. Sure, the basic elements of the genre are all there, starting from the chaotic instrumental mess to the manic scream/growl combinations and the short tracks ranging from six seconds to just over a minute and a half. The intricate riffs that are often associated with math metal bands are also strongly present. However, it seems that the band has integrated a lesson or two from the indie-pop scene, and that lesson is writing memorable, dare I say catchy, songs. You can throw on the 15 second \"Shortie\" and scream along, which is something you\'ll only dream of doing on traditional grindcore albums. Or you can spin \"The King\" or \"Sun Loop\" and marvel at the band\'s ability to write multi-layered guitars which make mockery of many of the genre\'s heavyweights.

This proves to me what I was suspecting all along based on their liveshow: all members in A Kid Hereafter have a distinct metal background. The songs are technically proficient, and the change from the gentle picking and strumming of their indie rock side to the shredding and blinding guitar work sounds effortless. The fact that all five guys contribute to the brutal vocal chaos suggests that too. If you listen closely enough, you\'ll even be able to draw quick parallels to classics like \"Panasonic Youth\" by The Dillinger Escape Plan.

If you are a returning reader at Rockfreaks.net, you\'ll know that I\'m not a grindcore enthusiast. In fact, most of the time I try to avoid reviewing grindcore releases like the plague because I usually find no redeeming aspects in them. A Kid Hereafter In The Grinding Light, however, is an exception. The band has somehow been able to integrate the playful, optimistic approach from their indie rock main project into the brutal slaughter of the instruments that\'s otherwise going on throughout the record. This very aspect alone keeps me returning to the CD. It keeps me wanting to hear more of \"Hitbot\" and \"Kid Selling Shit\". If all grindcore bands would stop taking themselves so seriously and insert a healthy dose of tongue-in-cheek attitude, they too would be receiving as high ratings as A Kid Hereafter.

8

Download: Shortie, Kid Selling Shit, The King, Slaves To The Truth
For the fans of: A Kid Hereafter, The Dillinger Escape Plan, See You Next Tuesday, Regurgitate
Listen: Myspace
Buy: iTunes

Release date 11.02.2008
Drug(s)
Provided by Target ApS

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