The Koffin Kats - Born of the Motor

The Koffin Kats - Born Of The Motor

 

This is the seventh studio album from the Detroit based Psychobilly band The Koffin Kats. If you don't know what psychobilly is, the best way to describe is if Elvis did punk rock. It blends old-school rockabilly beats and bass lines with punk rock riffs and B-movie horror references. It's a genre that seems old and yet at the same time new. The Koffin Kats have basically defined American psychobilly and are one of the older bands still out there going strong for over a decade now.

Unfortunately this album falls a bit flat. Their last full length release Forever For Hire was a great trip back to their roots and in my honest opinion their best work. This follow up album just doesn't manage to impress. Not that they're not trying, this is probably the biggest gamble and deviation from the rest of their work. It's less psychobilly and more pure hard rock. It's not that there's particularly one element that falls flat, the drumming is great, the guitar work shines, and front man Vic Victor's voice is just something not of this world. There's nothing bad, just nothing that excites.

There's still some stand out songs however. Devil Tales is excellent, it's full of romantic horror, great surf rock riffs and as always great vocals. This Heart Stays On Ice is a great swing tune that will have you rocking along. Again there's nothing bad about any of the songs or the album, but there's no songs that will have you running around telling everyone about it.

That's the basic issue of this album (and the last EP as well), it's solid, it's worth a listen for Koffin Kats fans and psychobilly fans, but it's not going to light a flame under anyone. It probably won't win over any new fans to the band or the genre. It is nice to see the band branching out and trying to incorporate new styles and sounds, but it'd also be nice to see them try and get back to their roots.