Welsh Post-Punk Does Backflips
As the year of 2011 draws to a close, Cardiff three piece KUTOSIS have slipped in and stealthily released one of the strongest debut albums I have heard in a long time.
Influenced by Liars, Les Savy Fav and more domestically Future Of The Left, KUTOSIS have hit the ground running by being able to boast former Test Icicle Rory Atwell as their new album's producer. Thankfully, that's not the only good thing "Fanatical Love" has going for it. After listening to the album all the way through, I was shocked to read that it had been recorded over two weekends. Two weekends. That's four days.
"Surely," I thought, "an album this well crafted can't have been recorded in such a short space of time?" Well it was. It goes to show that "Fanatical Love" isn't just an album replete with genuinely good song writing and strong artistic ideals; it is also a testament to the band's talent. KUTOSIS are a group of musicians who work well together and are able to bounce sounds off each other's instruments as if they were creating a symphony on a tennis court.
When you write a speech, people tell you it's good to start off with a joke. KUTOSIS take that information seriously. The album opens with '#asongtostartarecordwith', a short electronic interlude which can only be construed as poking fun at the depth which social networking has permeated our culture. That's the level these guys are working at here.
"Fanatical Love" also contains 'Shadows' and 'Skin' two songs which are so equally infectious and hypnotic that the band has decided to release them as a double-A sided single. I could not think of two songs which are more suited to be released in this fashion. Balancing each other out perfectly, while 'Shadows' out-powers the lingering melodies of 'Skin', what 'Shadows' seems to lack in subtlety 'Skin' makes up for in its sharp rhythms.
Other honourable songs on the album include the heavy pound and electronic drone of 'Battle Lake'. Here, the atonal strings and well timed percussive blasts are mellowed by vocals that are delivered soulfully and with definite purpose. Alternatively, 'House Sounds' is the album's most obvious statement that KUTOSIS are a part of the heavily guitar driven new wave of post-punk. This is seen most blatantly through the song's use of the addictive and repetitive guitar riff holding the piece together, while the fuzzed up bass and overall experimental composition go to work on your ear canal.
Every song on KUTOSIS's "Fanatical Love" is as enjoyable as the last, but it's not just the album itself that is a declaration of the band's artistic intent. KUTOSIS are using the album as a centrepiece for an even more experimental film project which saw ten film makers (including the likes of Ellen from Los Campesinos! and Welsh BAFTA winner Matt Brown) produce a short video for each song on the album.
"Fanatical Love" ensures that KUTOSIS have the strongest springboard to reach out and succeed in every future opportunity.