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Kobrakai - Untitled Ep

Reviewed by Pete | 09/05/2005 - 12:00AM

I first heard the name Kobrakai knocking about at the start of the Tunbridge Wells Forum’s 2004 Stable competition and apart from their name, haven’t heard a huge amount about them. I think the first thing I have to point out about this e.p is that the production is pretty bad, and has made my opinions of this e.p a lot more negative then they would have normally been. Whilst the levels are all pretty much about right, the quality and mastering sounds horrible. Overlooking the sound quality you can tell there’s more to Kobrakai than I first gave them credit for. I wouldn’t say there’s anything overly special about them but there are certain points which I can pin point and say ‘that’s not half bad’.

The further through the track listing I get the more I change my mind, this could be due to the poor production and quality, or just the fact that the latter tracks are better than the first. The vocals and screams I think do stand out, which give Kobrakai something to focus on and advance towards. I’ve spoken before about bands taking their time to find their sound and I feel Kobrakai are still to do that, from what I hear if they put it the work and keep at it they should progress more and more as time goes on. The majority of the riffs and beats fit in well and I must say I like the chilled and laid back guitar jams on the final track, ‘The Harder They Fall’. In my opinion this track and ‘Part of Me’ are the best on this untitled 4 track. They seem less bog standard and more stand out sound than the first 2, not to mention the production even seems slightly better.

If Kobrakai can record a better quality demo and possibly write for a bit longer then I feel this band will come on leaps and bounds. Don’t get me wrong Kobrakai aren’t a talentless band and I have heard far, far worse. But at the moment there’s nothing overly special about them, the songs are fairly typical of local bands from around the area and there’s nothing overly original about them. However if they focus on the things that do stand out and maybe experiment a little more with their songwriting then I’m sure the 3 piece can double their performance in sound.

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