KEN mode isn’t the name of some dodgy East End jewellery trader, but is the name of a well-established post hardcore / noise rock band from Canada. I understand that KEN stands for “Kill Everyone Now”.
“Entrench” may be their fifth album, but there’s no sign that KEN mode have matured to the point of retiring with their slippers and cocoa. People who do that don’t normally yell “your heart-warming story makes me sick” several times over. A lot of this album is of the anger-releasing action-packed punk hardcore, complete with high levels of energy, urgency and accusation. For a change, “Why Don’t You Just Quit?” is so hard-hitting and thumping that you’re liable to have a massive headache. Anger tears through this album. The ranting and raving singer informs us “No; I’m in Control” at one point, although it doesn’t sound like it. Pure venom mixes with chaotic ranting and thrashing anger. “The Terror Pulse” has the momentum of a punishment camp. “I want it all” screams the singer on “The Promises of God” to the accompaniment of a chaotic background wall of sound. Yet there are many other sides to this apparent rant-a-thon. Deep and throaty guitar lines and technically excellent riffage comes through all this and makes it more than a cut above the ranting, urban rest.
The brothers who are the background of this band were trained at the Canadian Royal Conservatory of Music, and add touches which you wouldn’t find from bands of a similar style. Trying to know what you’re listening to can be mystifying though. The album needed to break out as there was a danger of it getting stale. The band address this with the sixth track “Romeo Must Never Know”. It’s strange after all this mayhem and Hatesphere-type vocals to be listening to a sinister acoustic number. There’s even an Eastern quality to the guitar playing, which adds to the mystery of this altogether mystifying track until the band launch into a sublime piece of post rock. It is most unexpected and most welcome. Normal service is resumed with the fast, faster and harder “Secret Vasectomy”. Then after an imperious opening and a strong riff, the ranting continues but the guitar line is colourful. There’s then a subtle (yes, subtle) transformation to a chugging juggernaut. For all its violence, “Secret Vasectomy” has something uplifting and even funky about it and like the rest of this album, it has plenty to say. What is said is usually loud and uproarious. Never is this more the case than on “Why Don’t you Just Quit?”, which is typically fast, explosive and dangerous with its old fashioned punk hardcore and even rockabilly-style guitar progression. But hang on … just as on one level KEN mode are fast and energetic and all that goes with that, they baffle preconceptions. “Entrench” ends with “Monomyth”. It’s now as if they’ve turned into Cult of Luna. The sultry chords of the deadened night have a rounded sound quality. Whisperings can be heard. An orchestral sound enters the moody scene. It is a surprising end. “Monomyth” showcases the band’s wider talents which shine through the more average moments and suggest there is a lot more on offer from this band. But then keeping us alert is evidently part of their repertoire.
I struggle with the idea that all this diversity has an end result and err towards the view that KEN mode waste rather than exploit their considerable talents. The moments where they explore other styles on this irregular album are tantalising. There’s no doubt that this album has a buzz, but it could be argued that it’s like an energy drink which doesn’t have a lasting effect. Yet KEN mode do make an impression thanks to their fine musicianship and they don’t skimp on their passages just to get on to the next one. The raw material is there (and it’s raw) and there’s always life and movement on this in-your-face album, so there’s plenty to enjoy as we share the anger and cynicism of “Entrench”.
(6.5/10 Andrew Doherty)
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