‘Success‘ is a funny concept. On its rawest, most pure form, it is entirely relative, and this was the subject KEN mode chose to approach their new album with, aptly titled ‘Success’. Both sonically and lyrically, a shift has been made from the classic spitting of metallic hardcore tinged vitriol to a more raw indie aesthetic. On ‘Success’ drummer Shane Matthewson and KEN mode pay tribute to where they’ve come from, saluting both their Canadian Prairie roots and a time when they first started to care about making music. This was a time when the burgeoning ‘grunge’ and Touch & Go/Dischord scenes of the late 80’s and early 90s, with bands like Nirvana, Big Black, Cop Shoot Cop, the Cows, Circus Lupus, and Drive Like Jehu were warping their teenage minds.
Lyrically, the band’s fascination with comedy spirals around classical western concepts of ‘success’ – from employment, sex, marriage, religion, socioeconomic standing, and the perceptions people have of how they, and those around them, fit into the world.
{youtube}8OCH4axJR4Y{/youtube}
Shane’s Drum Specs:
Tama Starclassic Performer (Birch shells)
13″ x 11″ rack tom
16″ x 16″ floor tom
22″ x 16″ bass drum
Pork Pie “Big Black” 14″ x 6.5″ snare drum
Zildjian 19″ medium thin crash
Sabian 21″ raw bell ride
Sabian 14″ AAX stage hats
Sabian 18″ AA Chinese
DW 5000 accelerator pedal
Armed with this mantra, KEN mode enlisted the services of legendary engineer Steve Albini (NIRVANA, THE PIXIES, THE JESUS LIZARD) to capture the material in a fully analog session, bringing to fruition the most raw and direct effort they have ever put forth.
Leave a Reply