Album review: KILL FOR EDEN – Kill For Eden

Kill For Eden are a new and unsigned London-based outfit who are self-releasing their self-titled debut album.

The band play radio friendly chunks of pop metal wrapped around a dynamic vocal delivery. The look and sound is rooted in classic hard/melodic rock with twists of sleaze and glam. Think Hanoi Rocks, circa ‘Two Steps From The Move’ meets The Cult ‘Sonic Temple’. Chuck in a rocking Pat Benatar and you can see where the healthy references come from.

Kill For Eden’s biggest asset is undoubtedly lead singer Lyla D’Souza who has a belting voice with a technical and emotional range to match her smouldering looks. D’Souza adds depth to all the material here and confidently tackles top end metal, power rock, intimate soul and all shades in between – sometimes in the same track (check out ‘Beige’)!

The band was founded by D’Souza and guitarist Dave Garfield in 2009. The line up is completed by Mike McGuinness on bass, Andrea Basiola is on lead guitar and Wally Miroshnikov on drums.

This is a very competent, enjoyable and attractive album that brims with potential. It’s a grower too. The most immediate track is ‘Kerosene’ with a driving riff, soaring chorus and rumbling bass. ‘Over and Over’ is also built for the airwaves. Don’t be fooled though. There is some heavier and more challenging material here too. ‘Living On Mars’ features a skuzzy, gutteral riff before the chorus lifts the track and a change of pace injects a shot of adrenaline. ‘Ned’ chucks out a mean growl and weaves a narrative about Australia’s most famous outlaw.

‘The Evil That Men Do’ is amongst the strongest tracks with an insistent, nagging guitar and keyboard riff that rises into a powerhouse chorus. D’Souza goes for the jugular and stays on the right side of the tuneful/shouty divide at the business end.

There also a couple of tasty ballads that showcase Lyla’s vocal gymnastics. ‘Stalement’ is perhaps a touch formulaic, but ‘Fate Insists’ pulls out all the dramatic stops.

It’s not just about the vocals, though. Basioli’s lead guitar muscles into the limelight plenty: the red hot outro on ‘Beige’, the killer solo after an acoustic pause on ‘Ned’ and the dirty, low-slung guitar crawl all over ‘Slip Away’.

Some of the material falls a bit below top notch, like ‘Untouchables’, or ‘Little Wizard’. And at 14 tracks, the album could have been pruned back to focus attention on the top end quality. Nevertheless, this is a power-packed and confident debut. Good things are surely just around the corner for this lot.

****

Dave Atkinson

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