Puppet Kings - 'The Mountain' EP Review

Tracklist:

1. The Message

2. Mountain Song

3. Age Of Austerity

4. Bag Of Bones

Puppet Kings released their new EP “The Mountain” on 1st March following on from the release of the lead single “The Message”. Now, having reviewed that single recently, there’s just the small matter of checking the press release…yep, still just the two of them and yep, still sickeningly talented. Right, now that bit of housekeeping is out of the way, let’s talk about the EP.

Opening track “Age Of Austerity” has a similar feel to “The Message” to begin with, but the chorus has a fabulous Pop feel to it. As with “The Message” there’s nuance and subtlety in the delivery that raises the song above many others of the same genre and, as with the rest of the EP, the production values show the focus and attention to detail of true musicians.

The opening of “Bag Of Bones” starts with simple guitar and vocal before building into a great track with guitar and drums really bossing the song and making it very reminiscent of Foo Fighters and Queens Of The Stone Age, while the last 15 seconds sound just like Guns ‘N’ Roses as their running across stage playing their flat out best. There’s also some lush multi-tracking of the vocals in the quieter parts of the song that really lifts the song way above any competition.

My favourite song on the EP is “Mountain Song” which opens with a fuzzy, scuzzy guitar then transforms into a driving, pulsating little thing that you just can’t help falling in love with. I’ve been listening to this a lot and there’s something in it that snags in your brain…it’s taken me about a week to work it out but the guitar reminds me of “Miss You” by The Stones, while the drums and bass makes me think of (and they may hate me for this) “Crazy Horses” by The Osmonds. It’s by no means in your face, but it’s there in the background amidst some stunning drums and guitar and it sounds great.

Last up on the EP is “The Message” which is still as fresh as when I first reviewed it and (to the chagrin of my work colleagues who have to put up with my tone-and-tune-less singing) just as damn catchy.

Overall, this EP delivers on the initial promise of “The Message” and marks Puppet Kings as a band to watch. Even if, like me, you’re not really a big Rock fan they have the talent to deliver great music, which is all you can ask for really.