Band: Kings To You
Album: The Antidote
Label: None
Review By: “Wilhelm” Baker
Kings to You. The child of former IVM legend, Dismissed. Ever since I first heard these gentlemen, my ears have been starved for more. While Dismissed’s music fit the times accordingly, Dave and the crew wisely chose to reform their sound and refit it for awesomeness. Kings to You’s music effort, “The Antidote” is an epic album of sheer rock greatness. For any listener, the ties from Dismissed can be heard, especially in Dave’s voice and the great guitar work.
While I am wary of putting this band’s album into a genre, I do feel that it encompasses my favorite aspects of various sounds. The guitar in this album is extremely well done and not generic in any manner. In the faster, more energetic songs on the album, like “Closer” and “Strike Back,” the strong and driving guitar pushes the emotion of the album to a new level. Honestly though, the guitar work beautifully paints over all of the songs. Not to be forgotten, Danny Pena’s bass guitar playing is very well executed. Being a bass player myself, I admire Danny’s work on “The Antidote” because it is not overly simplified, easily replicable, and manages to support and add on to the greatness of all of their songs. As for drums on this album, Justin Beeson does an awesome job at backing the music. In no way are they overdone or annoying. Rather, I believe that the drumming is representative of how epic this album is. Vocally, this is where the album absolutely blows me away every time I listen to this CD. I’ve always enjoyed Dave’s voice, but with Kings to You’s release of “The Antidote,” I’ve gained SO much more respect for this band. The vocals are incredibly well executed and professionally sung. Dave has some VERY serious talent at singing, hitting pitches and notes that I could only dream of being able to do. Having grown up in a classically trained household of musicians, I can honestly say that the vocal work on this album is top notch in all realms of music. The vocals are intensely emotional (in NO WAY relative to emo) and are powerful to the ears. For evidence, check all of their songs out, but if you are looking for a prime candidate for your ears to taste, then check out “Cut it Down.”
Qualitatively, this album is top notch and very well planned. The recordings are all solid, clean, and professional. There isn’t a single thing I wish I could tweak in the songs while listening. The only dial you’re ever going to need to deal with on this album is the volume knob, which you can leave at maximum for the most effect. For this to be Kings to You’s first released album, I’d say they’ve done a great job engineering a great album. The album art is simple and grainy, which doesn’t add or detract from its quality.
The slower songs like “Take the Fall” and “The Arrow of The Hero” are in no way drawn out and boring. These songs do not drag on, causing me to want to bang my head on a sidewalk or click the “next” button on my CD player. Rather, these slow songs bring back the idea that a band like Kings to You, whose energy and musical talent are admirably high, can still shine in slower, softer songs as well as fast-paced intensity. Either way, all of the songs on “The Antidote” make me want to turn the stereo as loud as possible, regardless of sound ordinances.
Lyrically, this album is written very nicely. There is very little in this album that holds much spiritual relevance. However, believe me when I say that I can feel a hint at a faith in Christ. The subjects of the various songs range from relationships to the meaning of life. When I say that some songs are about relationships, please believe that this has nothing to do with the typical whiny, cry-myself-to-sleep music of this age. I actually enjoy this fresh new take towards relationships in this album. Essentially, it is not so overly sappy but extremely passionate at the same time. Either way, I highly suggest that anyone who is interested in Kings to You should definitely check out the lyrical creativity on this album.
My only complaint on the whole album is that they didn’t include a redone version of “Catapult” from their first three “demo” songs. Kings to You took the song “Misconception” and turned this song into a work of wonder. Honestly, they took what I thought to be a great song and slowed it down, changed the sound of it and made this thing into such a beautiful work of art. Needless to say, these boys need to keep doing what they are doing.
As a whole, this band’s music is motivating to say the very least. When I mentioned earlier that this album is an epic proportion of musical perfection, I mean it. This album, in my mind, is the epitome of the summer months. If you are interested in hearing great quality music that sounds like the musicians actually took careful time to construct an eloquent flow of passion, then Kings to You is definitely worth listening to. For twelve awesome songs with no filler, this album would be worth buying at almost any reasonable price. Honest!
In fact, you can buy the Kings to You album in the Indie Vision Music store right here! Do yourself a favor and get it. After all, your ears need exercise and a healthy diet as well as the rest of your body.