Kill Your Boyfriend – Killadelica (Album – Shyrec)
Genre/Influences: Shoegaze, Industrial-Rock.
Format: Digital, CD, Vinyl.
Background/Info: Italian formation Kill Your Boyfriend has been active since 2011. The band went through a few line-up changes and became driven by the duo Matteo Scarpa – Antonio Angeli. They released a few number of productions, often mixing different influences together; sometimes more Shoegaze and Post-Punk orientated, but also exploring Industrial-, Ritual- and Experimental paths. “Killadelica” has been introduced as a work inspired by the band’s own stories and experiences resulting in eleven songs. Notice by the way the album is also available in vinyl, which has been released by Little Cloud Records in collaboration with Sister 9 Recordings.
Content: Even if this formation has already experimented with different sources of inspiration, Shoegaze however remains the main music style running throughout their works. It’s not that different on “Killadelica”. The songs are composed with heavy, Shoegaze guitar play mixed with Electronic treatments. The drum patterns are bombastic and sometimes pretty violent. The songs are constantly recovered with a dark, overwhelming atmosphere. It has something disturbing and aggressive while some songs are ending into an elevating effect. The last track is somewhat softer, and even reminds me of The Sisters Of Mercy, but it remains a dark driven cut. The production of the vocals is hard to understand, accentuating the foggy feeling recovering this work.
+ + + : Kill Your Boyfriend has accomplished their opus magnum! This album is f****** brilliant for the way the duo merged Shoegaze guitar playing together with harsh Electronics and hard, repetitive beats. It creates a sonic hybrid between Shoegaze and Industrial music; the imaginary symbiosis between The Jesus & The Mary Chain and Suicide. It has a hypnotic feeling carried by an ominous atmosphere. It’s an extremely dark work. The song titles are all named after women first names, which accentuates a part of the mystery hanging over this work. As you don’t really understand the vocal parts –and yet, the production of the vocals is simply great, you only start to create your own stories. Tracks like “Jean”, “Agave”, “Elizabeth, “Eve” and even the calmer “Kathy” are totally representative of this work.
– – – : I noticed a few songs, which don’t reach a similar high level, but you don’t hear me complaining.
Conclusion: I remember the early works of this band had something, but the true potential of the band didn’t emerge at the surface. A few years later Kill Your Boyfriend has now released a dark masterpiece. They’re not reinventing shoegaze, but elevating the style towards another dimension!
Best songs: “Elizabeth”, “Jean”, “Natasha”, “Agave”, “Eve”, “Kathy”.
Rate: (8½).
Artist: www.killyourboyfriend.net / www.facebook.com/kyboyfriend
Label: www.shyrec.it / www.facebook.com/Shyrec
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