The Kin: Rise And Fall

The Kin’s sound initially could be described as a cross between Nick Drake and Bjork. It’s folksy but has a rather vast, expansive and textured arrangement that lures listeners in. The band uses this as a hook into the U2 or Coldplay-lite “Nowhere to Now Here”. At the same time, The Kin uses a light, moody approach to “Together” that resembles The Editors attempting a Keane cover. Most of this material comes off quite nicely, although some filler-ish moments come during the aptly coined “Interlude (Photographs)” which sounds just like, well, an interlude. The only problem with the album is that going down this same road can result in hitting a few potholes as is the case with “Great Divide” that recalls a Bic-lighter ballad by Queensryche or Dream Theater. The highlight here might be “See” which has a certain bite to it despite the light-hearted melody. However after listening to the gorgeous, Gabriel-esque “The One”, one realizes this is the one true jewel among a sea of above average material.