Gifted Kings - Lose What Makes You
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| Gifted Kings - Lose What Makes You |
Two pairs of Glaswegian brothers
walk in to a bar and, well, depending on your prejudices that joke any number
of ways, many of them violent. In this case, however, the siblings are more
likely to strap on a guitar, crank things up to eleven and rock the kilts off
you (I'll leave the Scottish thing alone now, promise). Gifted Kings open their
debut album with one of the best warning shot tracks I've heard in a long time
as 'Rains Will Come' throbs and grinds in to life like a rock behemoth. 'The
Last Time' continues in the same vein with ominously rumbling bass lines and
guitar work that is not merely confident, it's downright cocky but with every
reason to be so you kinda don't mind. Things take a turn for the mellower (i.e.
acoustic) on 'No One Knows' which allows Derek Murray's vocals to shine a
little better without having to battle with his brother Andy's lead guitar work
- it's still a belter of an indie-rock track though.
It's quite difficult to pitch
these guys in a line-up of similar bands (never a bad thing) but you're looking
at stadium sized acts like Stereophonics, the Killers, Simple Minds or Snow
Patrol at their more lively. 'Drive' has some great chiming guitars which beg
for a huge sea of people to wash over while 'Dead End Road' is a foot stomping,
bass slapping piece of triumphal rock that will appear to dads and emo kids
alike. My only irk with this album so far is that the vocals feel a little
reserved and you kinda want to Del boy to really unleash to power the songs
forward a little more - these are big tunes and they need a big voice on them
to take them to the next level. 'Tell Me Something' is up next with a jerky
rhythm and no sense of letting up on the rock'n'roll but 'Fortune In The City'
has a more classic rock feel to it, like the might Led Zep might pump out to
get a crowd's attention.
I would dare to suggest that
Gifted Kings aren't the finished article as songs like 'Last Trace Of The Sun'
are instantly forgettable indie-rock fodder and 'Wait' does little to improve
things on that front. 'Neon', on the other hand, has some nice chord changes to
it and an earthy, Lynyrd Skynyrd vibe to it which I am instantly drawn too. The
album closes with 'Written On The Wall' which echoes the refrain that started
the album and finds the quartet finishing on a strong note at least. If Gifted
Kings had chopped about four songs from this album it would have been a
tighter, more punchy affair but as it is 'Lose What Makes You' is a collection
of some very good indie-rock anthems in need of a bit of tweaking with a little
bit of padding. Some bands don't manage that level once in their career so this
ain't bad at all for a first attempt.
More information: www.giftedkings.com