Tom Good
11/11/06, 06:51 AM
Protest The Hero - Kezia
Release Date: April 4th, 2006
Record Label: Vagrant
One of the first times I heard about Protest The Hero came an interview with Dragonforce guitarist Herman Li, who called the band one of his favorite up and coming acts due to their unpredictability, technicality, and complex song structures. “Damn,” I thought, “if Dragonforce are praising a band for technicality, you know it has to be pretty impressive”. Well, although Protest The Hero may not have the over the top antics (and pure cheesiness) of Dragonforce, they have managed to release one of the most ambitious debut full lengths I have ever heard. More impressive, they did it when they were only 18.
Kezia has been dubbed a “situationist requiem” by the band. Due to the personal aspects of lyrical content, singer Rody Walker says that labeling it a concept album would be an insult to the band. But, as a story told in 3 different acts, this magnum opus is essentially a concept album, furthering the situation through the viewpoint of 3 different characters connected by the same story. Kezia is to be executed for a crime, and each of the 3 acts represents the feelings of the particular character in relation to the surrounding events.
Act 1 follows the viewpoint of The Prison Priest, which allows the band to intelligently and subtly express views on organized religion. This is a welcome break from the blatant expressions and religious references that have become almost commonplace in metal. The emotion felt by the character is brilliantly expressed through Rody’s unique voice, delivering lines such as “I’ll burn all the lives of this angel illuminati when St. Michael sized means find an end to justify, a belief to fortify this stained glass disgrace too beautiful to change or perhaps too scared that the truth behind our lies will be erased” from “No Stars Over Bethlehem”. “Heretics and Killers” showcases the bands knack for odd song structures, transforming from beautiful to crushing, acoustic to electric guitar, and start to stop so fast it will make your head spin. But for some reason, the formula works and never sounding forced. When “Divinity Within” starts with intense machine gun metal riffing and ends with just a piano, it is not at all surprising and makes for a pleasurable conclusion to the first chapter of our tale.
Act 2 starts out the story of The Prison Guard with the most comparatively metal song on Kezia, “Bury The Hatchet”. Complete with an operatic chorus and highly syncopated break section, the song contains one of the few instances in which Walker actually screams. This act, calling for powerful delivery and gentle sections, shows the diversity of Rody’s voice. “Blindfolds Aside” is one of the most accessible tracks on the album with an intro riff that sounds like Thrice’s “Deadbolt” on speed. Guitarists Tim Millar and Luke Hoskin really get a chance to showcase their talent on this song with extremely creative, memorable guitar lines and a monstrous tapped harmonic bridge section. The song fades with female vocals which contrast nicely with Walker’s vocals, and also give us the introduction to our protagonist Kezia.
Act 3/The Finale is the peak of the album, following Kezia, and containing some of the strongest songs on the album. “She Who Mars The Skin Of Gods” demonstrates the break neck speed Protest The Hero are capable of. The galloping, ever evolving, drums lock in with the groove so tight and riffs so intense, that by the time the song ended, I needed a rest. The urgency put forth in this act goes along perfectly with the powerful storyline concluding when Kezia meets her end “The Divine Suicide Of K”. This song contains some of the best drumming on the album showcasing the tempo changes drummer Moe Carlson performs so masterfully. Kezia’s narrative concludes with female vocals singing “Resurrected and maybe born again, I’ll always be Kezia so long as any hope remains”. Many details of the story are left up to the listener to decipher, but the last track, “A Plateful Of Our Dead”, steps outside of the story to sum up the “situationist requiem”. The final song is heavy on the screams and guitar theatrics and the minute long acoustic guitar outro is a great way to end the album, allowing the listener to reflect on the barrage of information and sound that was just endured.
I have to admit that when first listening to this album, it didn’t sound like anything special to me. I thought it was pretty generic, and didn't really connect with Walker's voice, which only sounded annoying to me at the time. Sure, the musicianship is incredibly impressive, but there are many bands that are on par with the band. It wasn’t until spending some serious time with Kezia that I truly began to appreciate it for what it is. The blend of hardcore, metal, punk and progressive rock will grow on you, especially listening with a creative ear to the story being painted through Rody’s poetic lyrics. There is a lot here. In fact, what’s almost scary is that I have barely even scratched the surface of the amount of material occurring on this album. To do so would require much more space than would be appropriate for a review. Even scarier is the fact that Protest The Hero are still young. With the amount of potential apparent on Kezia, it’s going to be interesting (and exciting) to see what this band can do in the future.
Act 1:
1. No Stars Over Bethlehem
2. Heretics And Killers
3. Divinity Within
Act 2:
4. Bury The Hatchet
5. Nautical
6. Blindfolds Aside
Act 3:
7. She Who Mars The Skin Of Gods
8. Turn The Soonest To The Sea
9. The Divine Suicide Of K.
Conclusion:
10. A Plateful Of Our Dead
AP.net Profile (http://www.absolutepunk.net/artists/showlink.php?do=showdetails&l=2378&catid=2<r=P&page=2) | Myspace (http://www.myspace.com/protestthehero) | Purevolume (http://www.purevolume.com/protestthehero) | Vagrant Site (http://www.vagrant.com)
Release Date: April 4th, 2006
Record Label: Vagrant
One of the first times I heard about Protest The Hero came an interview with Dragonforce guitarist Herman Li, who called the band one of his favorite up and coming acts due to their unpredictability, technicality, and complex song structures. “Damn,” I thought, “if Dragonforce are praising a band for technicality, you know it has to be pretty impressive”. Well, although Protest The Hero may not have the over the top antics (and pure cheesiness) of Dragonforce, they have managed to release one of the most ambitious debut full lengths I have ever heard. More impressive, they did it when they were only 18.
Kezia has been dubbed a “situationist requiem” by the band. Due to the personal aspects of lyrical content, singer Rody Walker says that labeling it a concept album would be an insult to the band. But, as a story told in 3 different acts, this magnum opus is essentially a concept album, furthering the situation through the viewpoint of 3 different characters connected by the same story. Kezia is to be executed for a crime, and each of the 3 acts represents the feelings of the particular character in relation to the surrounding events.
Act 1 follows the viewpoint of The Prison Priest, which allows the band to intelligently and subtly express views on organized religion. This is a welcome break from the blatant expressions and religious references that have become almost commonplace in metal. The emotion felt by the character is brilliantly expressed through Rody’s unique voice, delivering lines such as “I’ll burn all the lives of this angel illuminati when St. Michael sized means find an end to justify, a belief to fortify this stained glass disgrace too beautiful to change or perhaps too scared that the truth behind our lies will be erased” from “No Stars Over Bethlehem”. “Heretics and Killers” showcases the bands knack for odd song structures, transforming from beautiful to crushing, acoustic to electric guitar, and start to stop so fast it will make your head spin. But for some reason, the formula works and never sounding forced. When “Divinity Within” starts with intense machine gun metal riffing and ends with just a piano, it is not at all surprising and makes for a pleasurable conclusion to the first chapter of our tale.
Act 2 starts out the story of The Prison Guard with the most comparatively metal song on Kezia, “Bury The Hatchet”. Complete with an operatic chorus and highly syncopated break section, the song contains one of the few instances in which Walker actually screams. This act, calling for powerful delivery and gentle sections, shows the diversity of Rody’s voice. “Blindfolds Aside” is one of the most accessible tracks on the album with an intro riff that sounds like Thrice’s “Deadbolt” on speed. Guitarists Tim Millar and Luke Hoskin really get a chance to showcase their talent on this song with extremely creative, memorable guitar lines and a monstrous tapped harmonic bridge section. The song fades with female vocals which contrast nicely with Walker’s vocals, and also give us the introduction to our protagonist Kezia.
Act 3/The Finale is the peak of the album, following Kezia, and containing some of the strongest songs on the album. “She Who Mars The Skin Of Gods” demonstrates the break neck speed Protest The Hero are capable of. The galloping, ever evolving, drums lock in with the groove so tight and riffs so intense, that by the time the song ended, I needed a rest. The urgency put forth in this act goes along perfectly with the powerful storyline concluding when Kezia meets her end “The Divine Suicide Of K”. This song contains some of the best drumming on the album showcasing the tempo changes drummer Moe Carlson performs so masterfully. Kezia’s narrative concludes with female vocals singing “Resurrected and maybe born again, I’ll always be Kezia so long as any hope remains”. Many details of the story are left up to the listener to decipher, but the last track, “A Plateful Of Our Dead”, steps outside of the story to sum up the “situationist requiem”. The final song is heavy on the screams and guitar theatrics and the minute long acoustic guitar outro is a great way to end the album, allowing the listener to reflect on the barrage of information and sound that was just endured.
I have to admit that when first listening to this album, it didn’t sound like anything special to me. I thought it was pretty generic, and didn't really connect with Walker's voice, which only sounded annoying to me at the time. Sure, the musicianship is incredibly impressive, but there are many bands that are on par with the band. It wasn’t until spending some serious time with Kezia that I truly began to appreciate it for what it is. The blend of hardcore, metal, punk and progressive rock will grow on you, especially listening with a creative ear to the story being painted through Rody’s poetic lyrics. There is a lot here. In fact, what’s almost scary is that I have barely even scratched the surface of the amount of material occurring on this album. To do so would require much more space than would be appropriate for a review. Even scarier is the fact that Protest The Hero are still young. With the amount of potential apparent on Kezia, it’s going to be interesting (and exciting) to see what this band can do in the future.
Act 1:
1. No Stars Over Bethlehem
2. Heretics And Killers
3. Divinity Within
Act 2:
4. Bury The Hatchet
5. Nautical
6. Blindfolds Aside
Act 3:
7. She Who Mars The Skin Of Gods
8. Turn The Soonest To The Sea
9. The Divine Suicide Of K.
Conclusion:
10. A Plateful Of Our Dead
AP.net Profile (http://www.absolutepunk.net/artists/showlink.php?do=showdetails&l=2378&catid=2<r=P&page=2) | Myspace (http://www.myspace.com/protestthehero) | Purevolume (http://www.purevolume.com/protestthehero) | Vagrant Site (http://www.vagrant.com)