8

KXMeh?

What happens when you mix a former Hair Metal guitarist, a Prog Metal enigma and the drummer from the originators of Nu Metal? Well, impressive things actually. Whilst on paper it looks like this is a band thrown together at the end of an open mic night in your local boozer, KXM produce a consistently solid sound which draws from a range of different influences ultimately delivering on a good second studio release.

As far as their general sound is concerned, KXM are like your standard US Heavy Rock band but with an actual desire to provide something a little bit different - they're like a far more interesting version of Shinedown. With that said though, the glimpses of something a bit different are a bit too few and far between. For every track which delivers a dose of energy and genuine excitement, there's one which plods along in a very boring and generic fashion. Take for example Obsession - this is a track which in just over five and a half minutes sees all three members get the chance to fly off the handle a bit, injecting some real Funk and groove. Contrast that to the second track on the album Breakout and it just doesn't sound like the same band - this track in particular sounding like one of those bad tracks which would close out a WWE PPV in the early 2000s. That's the real frustration here, because had they cut out a bit of the filler and frankly boring stuff they would have had a real succinct stream of interesting material rather than it being in pockets as it is now.

Overall then, this is a pretty solid release and does look set to build on the popularity garnered from their debut release but where there are some real highlights, there is also a fair bit which is instantly forgettable. Solid record which will be enjoyed by the Hard Rock scene, but with a little more bite this could've made a far bigger impact.