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Krokodil - Nachash review



Reviewer:
7.0

14 users:
7.57
Band: Krokodil
Album: Nachash
Release date: November 2014


01. Shatter
02. Skin Of The Earth
03. Dead Man's Path
04. A Life Lived In Copper, But Painted In Gold
05. Reptilia Familiar
06. Porcelain Bones
07. The Collapse
08. Sleep Well, Medusa
09. Ragnarock
10. Sun Riders
11. Sobek
12. Phyllotaxis

Beards. Moustaches. 20 mm gauges. Tattoo sleeves and sleeveless shirts. Total package. But who cares, seriously? I'm not like a certain woman who judges a whole bunch of people based on looks and stereotypes. So far, I've heard a lot about Krokodil because of its line-up, but no one's ever talked about the actual music. Let's fix that right now.

"The band with the new bassist from Slipknot". "There are two members from SikTh in there". "It's kind of a supergroup with guys from Hexes and Cry For Silence". Doesn't matter, really. It helps them get likes on Facebook and get cool touring spots, but in the end, they will only last if they prove be to be relevant. So... Are they? Enough.

Krokodil plays a very metallic in-your-face brand of hardcore you could call rooted in sludge metal, incorporating strong early- Mastodon vibes at times and touches of Gojira at others. With their three guitarists on board, it's riffs galore as you could expect. However, I'm sure you're familiar with the proverb stating that "too many cooks spoil the broth", and in this case I wouldn't say the soup is ruined, but rather not original enough to have necessitated the expert contributions of three talented chefs.

Nevertheless, Nachash is packed with groovy riffs and catchy tunes. The songs flow one after the other in an order that makes it easy for the listener to lose track of time. With its forty-five minutes, the album isn't unnecessarily long in reality but still drags on in the end. Unless you're one of the very few people on planet Earth who do not mind uni-dimensional and unvaried vocals. Indeed, no matter how engaging and powerful that low-pitched shouting is, it could only become tiresome after a while, even with the addition of that instrumental track, some short passages with screeches scattered around the album, and the clean verses in "The Collapse".

I feel it is now necessary to conclude and set a few things straight, as I have the impression I haven't been entirely positive throughout these paragraphs. Nachash is a very enjoyable album for any fan of groovy and riff-oriented extreme metal. However, I am afraid its lack of originality and the previously mentioned flaws will deter the most critical of you from replaying it often. Now, if you make the mistake of falling for the supergroup trap, you'll most likely be disappointed. But when you take what Krokodil offers you, just like you would any other band releasing their début, you can only appreciate it and hope for a better follow-up.

I myself will stop lying to you and to myself and go back to staring at their pictures. Meanwhile, help yourself, listen to Nachash here, maybe there's something in their music that will help that ridiculous peach fuzz of yours turn into a full beard.


Rating breakdown
Performance: 7
Songwriting: 7
Originality: 6
Production: 8

Written by Ilham | 17.11.2014




Comments

Comments: 13   Visited by: 105 users
18.11.2014 - 12:16
!J.O.O.E.!
Account deleted
That album art is spectacular. I guess I should listen to this too, then, as they're at Temples.
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18.11.2014 - 12:39
Rating: 7
Ilham
Giant robot
Written by Guest on 18.11.2014 at 12:16

That album art is spectacular. I guess I should listen to this too, then, as they're at Temples.

Indeed, I forgot to link a bigger version in the review. I wouldn't mind seeing them at Temples if they don't clash with another band I don't want to miss (80% of the bill). They're all experienced, I can imagine them being good live. I doubt you'll fall in love with it though, but you should enjoy it enough, I think.
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18.11.2014 - 12:45
Rating: 7
BloodTears
ANA-thema
I've heard good things about this band and this review makes me finally want to move my ass and listen to it. I tend to like hardcore when it has a metal edge to it and this seems to be the case. So, this might be my thing
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Written by BloodTears on 19.08.2011 at 18:29

Like you could kiss my ass.


My Instagram
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18.11.2014 - 12:53
Rating: 7
Ilham
Giant robot
Written by BloodTears on 18.11.2014 at 12:45

I've heard good things about this band and this review makes me finally want to move my ass and listen to it. I tend to like hardcore when it has a metal edge to it and this seems to be the case. So, this might be my thing

Exactly. It's actually so metallic I was hesitant about calling it hardcore. I'm going to make an attempt at pinpointing the style with a comparison: the closest thing that sounds like them is a heavier Leviathan-era Mastondon, without the stoner moments, with a much cleaner production and core-er vocals. If that makes any sense to you haha. And you're much less of an elitist than Joe, so I could say there are chances you could like this a fair bit .
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18.11.2014 - 13:07
!J.O.O.E.!
Account deleted
I don't know what you mean.

*puts napkin over head and chows down on some ortolan*
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18.11.2014 - 13:23
Auntie Sahar
Drone Empress
Written by Guest on 18.11.2014 at 12:16

That album art is spectacular

And it's reminding me of this for some reason. Please tell me I"m not the only insane one here.
----
I am the Magician and the Exorcist. I am the axle of the wheel, and the cube in the circle. “Come unto me” is a foolish word: for it is I that go.

~ II. VII
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18.11.2014 - 13:27
!J.O.O.E.!
Account deleted
Written by Auntie Sahar on 18.11.2014 at 13:23

And it's reminding me of this for some reason. Please tell me I"m not the only insane one here.

That's really weird, that's precisely what I thought about when I saw the larger version
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18.11.2014 - 13:36
Auntie Sahar
Drone Empress
Written by Guest on 18.11.2014 at 13:27

That's really weird, that's precisely what I thought about when I saw the larger version

That's what I like to call a moment of mental cohesion
----
I am the Magician and the Exorcist. I am the axle of the wheel, and the cube in the circle. “Come unto me” is a foolish word: for it is I that go.

~ II. VII
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20.11.2014 - 15:07
angel.
Evil Butterfly
Oh, the artwork is very bizarre, nice piece you wrote, not always too many cooks spoil the soup However, I will check it out soon.
----
The Fangirl.
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20.11.2014 - 21:04
The Point

Like many "certain" women, the review is a bit all over the place for me and I can appreciate why, BUT you do make a useful point or two. I personally think the guitars were well co-ordinated and very controlled. It never once got messy. And its the excited press not these five friends who attach "super" to the group. The fact is, as you suggest, this is a very fine first album with some stand-out tracks. The Mastadon tour was just good fortune, a suggestion from a certain guitar techie. The lead singer (you are right) has a better range which is rarely exploited and this limits the band's creativity to a degree. What this band does in the future is anyone's guess given that they all have commitments elsewhere but like you, I hope they start work on another album and appear at summer festivals. They have much to offer and its about time a Brit Band broke the mold.
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20.11.2014 - 22:07
Rating: 7
Ilham
Giant robot
Written by The Point on 20.11.2014 at 21:04

Like many "certain" women, the review is a bit all over the place for me and I can appreciate why, BUT you do make a useful point or two. I personally think the guitars were well co-ordinated and very controlled. It never once got messy. And its the excited press not these five friends who attach "super" to the group. The fact is, as you suggest, this is a very fine first album with some stand-out tracks. The Mastadon tour was just good fortune, a suggestion from a certain guitar techie. The lead singer (you are right) has a better range which is rarely exploited and this limits the band's creativity to a degree. What this band does in the future is anyone's guess given that they all have commitments elsewhere but like you, I hope they start work on another album and appear at summer festivals. They have much to offer and its about time a Brit Band broke the mold.


Maybe I should clarify a few points then . I am always very sceptic when something is sold to me as a "supergroup". What I was mocking was the people's attention focusing on that rather than ever talking about what they have to offer, in no way did I want that to be a negative comment on the band. For the guitar thing, I don't think they ever got messy. I just think the album didn't benefit THAT much of a third guitarist. And I'm very happy they got the Mastodon gigs, their music will be a perfect opener for them, that will most likely help them in the future if they ever get together again for another album. Which I am looking forward to. I think my tone might be what threw you off, I really wanted to judge Nachash like I would any other album, so I had to separate "the hype" from the "real".

I myself will be seeing them at Temples festival in May 2015, which is why I was delighted to get to review them. Thank you for your comment, it's good to see we have a similar opinion overall.
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20.11.2014 - 22:16
!J.O.O.E.!
Account deleted
I still need to listen to this.
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21.11.2014 - 11:00
X-Ray Rod
Skandino
Written by Guest on 20.11.2014 at 22:16

I still need to listen to this.


Glad to see I'm not the only one to forget.

EDITED
So I'm halfway through it and it sounds good... But just good. Like the kind of good that you dont mind the music being on but you might as well just do some other stuff while it's running. Do my homework, wash my clothes. etc.
I can see myself watching them at Temples if there's absolutely nothing else I want to see.... Which is extremely difficult. It's good shit though but nothing I'm that interested in. The artwork is fantastic though but that was obvious.
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Written by BloodTears on 19.08.2011 at 18:29
Like you could kiss my ass
Written by Milena on 20.06.2012 at 10:49
Rod, let me love you.
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