Originally beginning as Earth Shaker, this bunch of Italians took the name Kingcrow from Edgar Allen Poe’s poem Raven. They’re described as a prog/metal band though, on the evidence of this album, the metal element is definitely in hiding. Suppose you’re a fan of progressive metal and shredding guitars. In that case, you’ll not find much here to hold your attention and, yes, there are some bursts of guitar, most notably on tracks like ‘New Moon Harvest’ and ‘Parallel Lines,’ but mostly what there is remains firmly understated in the background.
‘Hopium’ is, however, chock full of synths and electronica, and there’s a sense of ambience, a ‘feel’ with a mood of being laid back and in places almost pastoral. It’s also quite a melodious album, the production is warm and the overall sound is good, there’s also strong musicianship right across the board, and for a band renowned for their lyricism, the lyrics occasionally suggest whoever wrote them was experiencing a mild bout of melancholy at the time.
The upbeat ‘Kintsugi’ (a Japanese term suggesting beauty can be found in imperfection) was released as a single and was described as ‘an anthem for anyone who’s ever faced defeat, only to rise again with a renewed sense of purpose and beauty.’ It’s quite a powerful opening statement. There’s a nod to bands like Riverside on tracks like ‘Losing Game’ and ‘Glitch,’ while White Rabbit’s ‘Hole,’ the most full-on prog track on the album, contains some epic playing as the song opens up .. which is similar to ‘Night Drive,’ also a powerful piece.
The quiet sounding ‘Come Through’ ends the album though, for this reviewer, the title track ‘Hopium,’ a song about regret .. “do you blame the man I am, for the frail hopes I’ve sown” .. would have been a much better and more powerful conclusion to this fine album. This is an album which might not ‘gel’ with the more intense progger, as it’s a little removed from the intensity of their earlier albums, but there are some quite intriguing moments present, certainly more than enough to retain interest right the way through.
