Review by Steve Earles
Canada is like a metallic Cauldron (pun intentional!) at the moment, constantly spewing forth molten metal into the world.
And now we have Kolony, who to my experienced ears sound like a collision between the New Wave of British Heavy Metal sound beloved of Cauldron and Laugh At The Fakes, while utilising a strong does of conceptual progressive metal.
All four band members are great musicians and more importantly, great song-writers. I mean these fellows are virtuosos but they’re not Yngwie style egotists; the song is king here.
There’s an optimistic ‘up’ sound to their music, which is great. The concept here is about building a better society, away from materialism, in harmony with nature. Great cover art too – these things matter.
The band they have most in common with is Megadeth in their prime, thankfully without Mustaine’s increasingly deranged bigotry and conspiracy theory rantings!
So, Kolony are a band to look for!
Review by Matt Hinch
Every once in a while a CD will land on my doorstep that reminds me what the true spirit of “heavy metal” is all about. In this case that CD is Sledge by Montreal shredders Kolony.
The group embodies the qualities that make up what can be considered the stereotypical, or “mass perception” style of heavy metal. Driving rhythms, shredding solos and plenty of parts sure to get the head banging. However, they also bring just a whiff of cheese to the table.
There’s plenty of similarity to bands like Dragonforce in spots with that slightly overdramatic epicness enhanced by synth/string/piano accompaniment. Those touches don’t saturate the album though and it’s seldom that they seem unnecessary. The riffs and vocals provide ample grandeur and flair without the extra pomp.
What does saturate the album is those riffs and vocals. Kolony pack in just about every note they can through ripping leads, lots of melody and the aforementioned solos. The clean vocals too lend hook after hook to pull the listener in.
As a whole, Sledge will appeal to a certain subset of metal fans. Its uplifting nature, lack of extremity (other than speed) and modern metal accessibility keeps it on the above ground radar. It’s more Trivium than Trenchrot if you know what I mean. More in line with the likes of Black Tide, Alestorm and A7X.
Kolony keep a good pace going, save for the obvious ballad. They’ve got the showmanship that speaks to the ’80s, a triumphant air, a definite eye for hooks and you have to give them props for their chops. Sledge is technically precise and slick as a duck’s back but even at only 45 minutes it feels a little too ambitious. There’s little variation between songs so by the later tracks it can get a little tiresome. But it all depends on your taste and what you’re in the mood for. It you want fast tempos, melody and (frustratingly) catchy clean vocals in the mass market metal vein, then Kolony have just what you’re after.
Kolony – Sledge (Self-Released)
Facebook: KolonyMusic www.facebook.com/kolonymusic
Youtube: KolonyMusic www.youtube.com/user/kolonymusic
Bandcamp: Kolony.Bandcamp.com kolony.bandcamp.com
