Kill Appeal
Visitation (EP)
Independent release
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‘Visitation’ is the debut EP from Sydney band Kill Appeal. The thing I most like about it initially is that the sound is there, it doesn’t sound like it was written, performed and recorded in a bedroom or garage like a lot of Indie releases do. The second thing I like about it is the variety on display. Whilst too much variety can often kill an album (you know when you get the feeling the band has no idea what they want to sound like) on an EP it’s all about possibilities and there are plenty here.
Whilst I’m not sure about the alien artwork (I’ll have to ask the band about that) the songs are solid. Opener ‘Call Me Mental’ is the metal end of late eighties Sunset strip punked up and Van Halenised. It’s great fun. Best of the bunch for me though is second track ‘Diamond Python’ which kicks like Crue. There’s a real underground feel to the vocals from Fraser that reminds me of those higher octane singers of yesteryear cross-bred with Johanssen and Mustaine (to be honest I can’t find an adequate reference). It may be an acquired taste for some but I actually really like it and so do the ‘younger’ listeners I played it for.
What we get is a solid band, nice bass, drums and great guitar from Donohoe. There’s a degree of ‘pop’ sensibility here too, sure the songs are rooted in rock but they are also constructed well enough to have a broader appeal. There’s also the unquestioned youthful vitality and punk outlook to appeal to the rebels.
‘Out of This World’ for example has more than a hint of Kiss but with the outlook of the Dolls or the Ramones (not that they sound too much like those two bands). Closer ‘I Want You Dead’ is cartoon metal punk complete with gong! It’s as left field as we get and dabbles with ‘prog’ in a non-threatening way.
There’s a lot to like in these four short tracks and it all points in the right direction. Kill Appeal is not a generic band, they have their influences sure, but they don’t let them overpower them like so many young bands do. Instead they have already discovered their own sound, and with every member of the band under the age of 20 things could happen for these guys.
By Jo Rockpit
