OVERCOMING THE MONSTER

With this new album kingbathmat stays true to their style and they deliver the goods once again. Containing six tracks and with a running time of 50 minutes, the album is well balanced. Most of the tracks being in the 7 to 12 minutes range, with a sole exception, each song have all the space it needs to breathe and reach its full potential. There's a feeling of homogeneity throughout the album, some ideas being reused here and there with success.

The album starts really strong with the combo Sentinel and Parasomnia, two top-notch songs with splendid instrumental passages. Both shows the force of the group to create longer songs that stays interesting without being over complex, blending smoother and heavier passages. There's enough variation and complexity to keep the listener attention but the result always stays harmonious.

The following song, Overcoming the Monster, is the weakest point of the album to me. It uses the same ingredients but the end result is not as successful. It feels patchy, especially some of the vocal segments. Happily the last three songs are all excellent, although none can rival with the first two, except the last one. If the tracks Superfluous and Kubrick Moon blend again the same elements in different manners, the shorter and mellower Reality Mining is free of heavier moments. All in all this is a first-rate album from kingbathmat. These guys definitely deserve to be more widely acclaimed.

Edit: many months have passed and I'm now sure this album deserves no less than 5 stars. One of the very best of 2013!