Album review: FREAK KITCHEN – Cooking With Pagans

Thunderstruck [Release date – 09.09.14]

When I saw the band’s name and album title I assumed it was a new Heston Blumenthal television series! It turned out that this is the second album release from Swedish rockers Freak Kitchen who describe themselves as a ‘tip top rock trio’, sounds promising.

It is clear that the band has a sense of humour which is always good to see and that translates to their music which is upbeat with hints of Queen and Extreme along with a heavier, almost grunge sounding side which is where the album kicks off.

‘Professional Help’ opens things and sounds like an outtake from the Soil back catalogue, no bad thing. Heavy and catchy in equal measure it is a good introduction to the band. Throughout the album the band run through many musical styles from a bit of Rockabilly on ‘Goody Goody’ to power metal on the track ‘Ranks Of The Terrified’. It is testament to the three musicians that they manage to pull this off with ease.

Singer and guitarist Mattias Eklundh is obviously a man who can multi-task with ease, his vocals are good but his guitar work is exceptional, think Eddie Van Halen mixed with Nuno Bettencourt and you are in the right area. Bjorn Fryklund on drums and Christer Ortefors on bass are no slouches either and they produce the perfect accompaniment to Eklundh’s fret burning.

The guys’ sense of humour also extends to song titles with ‘(Saving Up For An) Anal Bleach’ and ‘I Don’t Want To Golf’ catching the listener’s attention and lyrically the songs live up to their names. The disc though is all about the music which is impressive throughout and with so much going on it certainly holds your attention.

An interesting and enjoyable album then from a trio with talent in spades. If you like a bit of humour and variety then this will fit the bill nicely. ***1/2

Review by David Wilson

Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions, streamed via Facebook.
In 2023 he signed a recording deal with Sony in Canada and released a new single on 15 September.

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Power Plays w/c 11 November 2024

ARCANE MOON Hello Sun (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC XTC (Long Branch Records)
ARCANA KINGS Here We Go (Curtain Call Records)
KLOGR face The Unknown (Zeta Factory)
BEYOND UNBROKEN Dance With The Dead (FiXT)
REVENGIN Decadent Feeling (Wormholedeath)

Featured Albums w/c 11 November 2024

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003-2023 (Singer Songwriter)