The Moshville Times - Album Review: King Kraken

We’ve been following King Kraken for some time, catching them live at both Bloodstock in recent years. They’re lovely blokes and as such I was really pleased to get an early listen to their latest slimy ~~testicle~~ tentacle-filled outing, March of the Gods.

Their brand of metal is simply… heavy. There are no tricks, no fancy embellishments, no hints at sub-genres. Pure, old fashioned “heavy” heavy metal. With added Welsh. Singer Mark Donoghue’s lilt just about comes through in some of the lyrics if you know what to listen for!

“Scream” is a more than decent opener, but “El Giganto” is a perfect example of where it’s at. That perfect mix of pace and pound, and lyrics such as “Don’t you know that the lucky ones are dead” in this tale of a 50-foot tall laser-eyed behemoth. OK, so you can tell that much as King Kraken take their music seriously, their lyrical content is perhaps a bit more comic-book (or Lovecraft short story), but that’s part of the appeal. Music can be a wonderful way to tell tales and allow escapism, and these guys hit that sweet spot while still hammering home some great riffs.

With the title track full of solo flurries courtesy of Adam Healey and Pete Rose, the bass and drums courtesy of Karl Meyer and Richard Lee Mears are still prominent. It’s by this point that you realise that this may be an independent release, but it has all the care and attention that a label-funded album would expect.

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“Vigilante” is another song that goes for the “slow and f’ing heavy” pacing, frantic flurries of lead guitar over the ponderous rhythms before ending at a faster pace. It’s a great song, and a highlight on an album full of them. If your head isn’t banging back and forth by the time it finishes, kindly get the nurse to check your pulse.

I love the mid-section of “Magnum Opus” and “Chainsaw Saviour” comes over like a really heavy Blackstone Cherry number for some reason. This is by no means a complaint!

I’m going to circle back to another song, though, to round out this review: “Hero”. This one stands out for a couple of reasons. It’s musically a little more laid back, and the lyrics are very much not about monsters or battles or anything like the rest of the album. This is a tribute to Mark’s father, and it’s a lovely addition to the album, very different to the other songs but not out of place.

March of the Gods is a shining example of why you should be ing the independent music scene. Picking up their merch and going to those £8 gig (that’s the price of a Glasgow ticket this June) in an age where it’s not uncommon to pay ten times that for a band with a label taking 95% of their earnings does more for the future of our music than anything else.

March of the Gods UK Tour 2025