Hulkoff - KVEN Review

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Concise Summary:

When I started listening to KVEN, I thought, "Wow, this really sounds like Raubtier." After some quick research, I was somewhat unsurprised to find out that Hulkoff is Pär Hulkoff's solo project, and that he is the lead singer and guitarist for Raubtier. With that perspective, I suppose it's not surprising that Hulkoff sounds almost identical to Raubtier, but I still would have liked to see something different from Hulkoff. As is, KVEN could easily pass as a Raubtier album; there's not much to make it unique. The guitars are extremely heavy and the singing is very guttural, just like Raubtier. The songwriting is based on chugging guitars more than intricate riffs and there isn't much for variety in instruments, again, just like Raubtier. Because Hulkoff is basically one-man Raubtier, it has the same issues as Raubtier. The mixing on KVEN is oppressively balanced toward the low end, the guitar sounds muddy, and half of the songs sound like they have the same music. It could be personal preference, but dwelling on the lowest strings of a drop-tuned 7 string guitar for 95% of the album just leaves me wanting some variety. Pär is really a great vocalist, and I really do love some of the songs on KVEN, but at the end of the day, I was disppointed by lack of songwriting diversity on KVEN and the sheer similarity of Hulkoff to Raubtier.

My Rating: 6 out of 10


Highlights:
  • Great singing 
  • Heavy riffs
  • Some catchy songs 
Lowlights:
  • Honestly really bad mixing - too heavy on the low end for the entire album; it also sounds a bit muffled, which is weird. Could be Spotify playback, but I'm not sure.  
  • Basically no songwriting diversity
  • Way too similar to Raubtier
  • Guitar sounds muddy 
Favorite Songs:
  • Jarfr
  • Dragonrider
  • Einherjr
Band Info:

Hulkoff Facebook

Hulkoff Encyclopaedia Metallum

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Disclaimer: The views expressed in this review are solely those of the author of this article and serve only to convey his opinion of the album in question, not to harm the band. 

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