No Longer Immune
Leeds rockers Master & The Mule claim to have spent the last two years cultivating their new material in their studio and judging by the ominous, sombre vibe that characterises their single Kingdom, you'd think that they had been locked away with no social interaction for the past 24 months.
Even after numerous listens, Kingdom can still be quite a difficult track to 'settle' into, with the uprooting changes in time signatures continually keeping you on edge. Despite the twisting compositional nature, the drums intertwine fluently with the beautiful tone of the bass guitar, providing a firm instrumental grounding. Electronic outbursts ripple from the sustained overdriven guitar leads and transform what could have quite easily been an utterly lifeless and dreary soundscape into a living, breathing aural machine. The lead vocals are suitably atmospheric, but the harmonies are distractingly peculiar, which would explain the decision to place them quite low in the mix.
These are clearly exciting times for the Leeds rockers, with their debut album The View from Nowehere due for release in March. This upcoming release should be particularly interesting; although Kingdom clocks in at just over seven minutes in length, it feels somewhat disconnected and imperfect. However, cushioned amongst a full-length line-up, Kingdom could possess the greater impact and identity that it dearly needs.