Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A fantastic groundbreaking debut, 2 Mar 2005
Kino is the new band from "The Urbane"'s frontman John Mitchell. Although sharing some common ground with the two albums by "The Urbane" this is something very different. For those unfamilar with them, "The Urbane" are a modern style rock band in the early "Foo Fighters" and "Radiohead" theme, although Kino are a rock band as well their music seems to be more "rounded". There are so many different styles of music on this album that it is hard to describe them all. For instance, the classic opener "Loser's day parade" (I think it's about the emptiness of life on the rat race) starts with catchy agressive guitar riffs, before going into acapello style funky singing. This then returns to the original riff but this time with a guitar and then a keyboard solo over the original sound. After another bout of solo singing the song ends in a rousing repeated lyric followed by a soaring guitar solo. Most of the songs are generally "Rock" in style although each differs greatly in its style, this album is likely to draw great longevity from this. The final song is something special, a touching piano ballad which would make a good single. In conclusion this is an excellent thinking man's rock band, it's complicated yet still catchy, aggressive, and reflective in equal measure. One thing to remember, "Kino" has been touted as a "super group" due to the inclusion of the bassist from "Marillion", the keyboardist from "It-Bites" and the ex-drummer from "Porcupine tree", and the guitarist from "Arena" and "The Urbane". Fans of these bands may well buy this album for the names alone, however if you do not consider yourself a fan of these bands DO NOT WORRY, this music is strong enough to find an audience without standing on any shoulders.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Prog Or Pop, 17 Aug 2005
Because of the people involved the main reason anyone is likely to investigate this album is if they are a fan of Arena (John Mitchell), It Bites(John Beck), Marillion (Pete Trewavas) or Porcupine Tree(Chis Maitland). It's true, the guitar work sounds very like Arena, there are lots of poppy, quirky It Bites moments and some parts do sound like Steve Hogarth should be singing them. But, as often happens, the child may inherit some features of its parents, but it also develops its own identity. In this case, Kino lean much more towards Pop than any of the above bands, often sounding more like Joe Jackson or Sting. The songs do have a progressive element though - usually in the solo middle sections. This is most evident in the nine minute opener which sounds a lot like Spocks Beard towards the end, lest we also forget that Trewavas was also in Transatlantic with Spock's Neal Morse. So, it's more Pop than Prog, but that doesn't mean it's rubbish. The songs are well written, catchy and with that elusive property that makes you want to play them again. In then end, like It Bites before them, Kino probably fall squarely between two stools - too prog for a pop band and too pop for prog rock. Time will tell, Kino expect to be around longer than most supergroups.
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Kino - Picture, 16 Jul 2005
Being an It Bites fan, I have been slightly frustrated by the lack of an LP/tour since they reformed 2 years ago. Having kept an eye on their website, I knew about Kino but didn't really take much notice. Having recently returned from overseas, I started to take an interest again in music. I decided to buy this LP on the back of It Bites and Marillion.
Firstly, can I say that this is probably the It Bites Lp that never was.......it's brilliant. Melodic, catchy with a bit of prog thrown in. If you are into the pop/rock side of prog music, this is the LP for you.
Since I brought the LP I can't stop playing it, much to the disgust of my wife. Losers day parade starts the LP off in excellent style but Leave a light on and letting go are just superb. After a couple of good tracks, Kino let rip with 3 greats; Perfect Tense and Room for Two are just stunning but they pull out all the stops on Holding On. This track is just excellent and worth the £10 alone. CD, MP3 player, Computer, this track is on them all. If you don't believe anything that I've written so far, please listen to this track and I dare you not to get hooked by it especially after the second chorus.
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