Courtesy: Hudu Akil
Independent rock band Hudu Akill (pronounced Who Do I Kill?) has come up with a unique way to get the word out about its debut album Eye for an Eye. The band is giving away free copies of the album to audiences who follow the band on its official Facebook page. The offer is only for a limited time. The album, which is available now, is an interesting presentation. That is due in part to its sequencing. This item will be discussed shortly. The record’s musical arrangements, by connection, are worth addressing. They will be discussed a little later. The lyrical content that accompanies the musical content will also be discussed later. Each noted item is important in its own way to the whole of this record. All things considered, they make Eye for an Eye a presentation that is worth hearing at least once.
Hudu Akill’s recently released debut album Eye for an Eye is an interesting offering from the fledgling rock band. It deserves to be heard at least once. That is due in part to its sequencing. The sequencing is important in that it really displays the album in two distinct sections. The record’s first half consists of a series of loud, heavy punk style arrangements. The most notable of those works comes in the form of the album’s single, ‘Who Do I Kill.’ The song’s arrangement boasts a sound that is at least slightly comparable to that of early works from Corrosion of Conformity. A brief “interlude” breaks things up following that song. From there, the album turns to a more decidedly garage/stoner rock sound. What’s interesting to note here is that the band doesn’t just immediately shift gears from one style sound to another. Rather, the transition is much smoother thanks to the hybrid punk/garage sound of ‘Don’t Look Now.’ That song really bridges the album’s two halves. From there, the album’s overall sound turns more in the sludge/stoner direction. Even within that change in style, the arrangements keep the album’s energy high right up to its finale/title track. The song in question starts off in a very subdued nature, but eventually picks up and while slow and plodding is still very heavy in its own right. In short, the album’s sequencing does its own part to ensure listeners’ engagement, making sure to change things up for listeners just enough at just the right points. That in itself is a positive for this record, without question. The arrangements, which have already been discussed briefly, play into the album’s presentation in their own right.
As already noted, Eye for an Eye presents some distinct arrangements throughout the course of its 45-minute run time. Audiences get a touch of punk rock in ‘Who Do I Kill?’ it’s a sound that throws back to the punk sounds of the 80s. The grinding guitars and heavy bass and drums couples with front man Zac Crye’s vocal delivery to make this a song that boasts its own unique sound. As noted already, it presents something of an old school Corrosion of Conformity sound that is sure to appeal to certain listeners. It could even be argued that there is a comparison to Pantera here, too.
One of the songs featured in this record not already addressed is ‘Desert Boogie.’ The song is a full on instrumental track. While the garage stoner sound is there, what’s interesting is the addition of the extra percussion. A tambourine is featured alongside what sounds like some extra toms and maybe even some Middle Eastern percussion alongside the guitar. That overall percussion section forms the songs foundation. The foundation is enriched through the use of the bass and guitar. The spoken word verses that are added in near the song’s end only add even more to the work. The whole becomes a very psychedelic work that is easily the album’s most unique works. It is just one more example of what makes the album’s musical arrangements so important. ‘Neb Cruiser’ is one more way in which the record’s musical arrangements show their importance.
‘Neb Cruiser’ is part of that first half of the record that exhibits a more distinct punk vibe. At the same time, it is also part of that gradual transition from the album’s more distinct punk sound to its more stoner rock sound. That is evident in its up-tempo base, and the guitar, bass and drums. The approach taken here is full of fuzzed guitar, but at the same time, also presents a sound that is more familiar in punk circles. The vocals here are more distinctly punk than stoner, too, in style. The two styles together make for an interesting listen and in turn show even more why the album’s musical arrangements are so important to its presentation. When it is considered with the rest of the album’s musical arrangements and those noted here, no doubt is left as to why the musical content featured in this record is so important to its presentation. Even with that in mind, it is not the last of the album’s most important elements. The lyrical content that accompanies the album’s musical content plays its own key part to the record’s presentation.
The lyrical content featured in the album’s closer/title track is just one way in which the noted content makes its own impact. This song’s lyrical content is certain to create plenty of discussion. It states in its lead verse, “Into the void/An ode to joy/I’ve been created and destroyed/Burned on the wing of the firefly/Ashes to ashes/An eye for an eye/I splinter into mandala/And stagger into the void/Chasing the tail of the asteroid/I’ve been created and destroyed/ Into the void, an ode to joy/I’ve been created and destroyed/Burned on the wing of the firefly/Ashes to ashes an eye for an eye/I splinter into mandala/Ashes to ashes an eye for an eye/Ashes to ashes an eye for an eye/Leaves the whole world blind.” This comes across as some very transcendental language to say the very least what with the mentions of being created and destroyed and “chasing the tail of the asteroid.” The song continues in similar fashion in its second verse in which the song’s subject seems to ask if he should change who and what he is. Needless to say, this will generate its own share of interest among audiences, and in turn show in its own way, why the album’s lyrical content is so important to its presentation. It is just one of the ways in which that content proves so important. The lyrics at the center of ‘Neb Cruiser’ is another way in which the album’s lyrical content shows its value.
‘Neb Cruiser’ comes across as another psychedelic work, considering some of its verbage. In the bigger picture though, it comes across relatively simplistic as a song about living life. This is just this critic’s own interpretation. The seeming message is inferred as Crye sings in the song’s lead verse and chorus, “Reach for the sky, but look out below/What the future holds, I don’t know – let’s go!/Out on the highway, and into the void/They’ll be like, “last time I saw you/You were just knee-high to an asteroid/Dead or alive, it’s been a long time coming/Toward end of days/I just keep on running/Until the sun sets on me/Nebula Cruiser, steel horse and black boots/And I’m drifting, drifting, drifting/Drifting away.” That seeming message continues in the song’s second verse, which finds Crye singing, “From every direction the planets collide/To no particular destination/Upon the dust we ride/Out on the highway, into the abyss/Leaving on a jet plane, baby/Don’t know if I’ll be missed.” Again, this seems to hint at a message of simply living life and appreciating it no matter what. Hopefully this critic’s interpretation is somewhere in the ballpark. Regardless, the discussion that this content will generate shows even more why the album’s lyrical content is so important. It is just one more way in which the album’s lyrical content proves its value. ‘Dawn’ is one more example of why audiences should key in to the album’s lyrical content.
‘Dawn’ presents a theme that seems familiar in its own right – that of a relationship in some form of turmoil. That is inferred as Crye sings in the song’s lead verse and chorus, “Now, we’ve been casting stones since the first rays of the new sun/Howling at the moon like a dog when the day is done/Theres still plenty more time/We still got a hell of a long way to go from here/If you love me like you say you do/Then let me go/If you hate me like you ought to do/Just let me know/If you wanna kill me like you should/I know if I was you, I would/So come on- put the bullet in/Kill me/We’ve still got a hell of a long way to go/Before we’re gone, in the temple of the dawn/Alright, show me the door.” The song’s second verse hints even more at the noted theme as it states, Sun up, sun down, chasing you all over town/Kinda makes me feel like a damned old fool/Early morn, til late at night/Wondering if you’re alright/Just like a ***damn fool/Why do you keep me waiting, baby/Lie to me girl/Waste all of my time/When you treat me this way it drives me insane/Girl, won’t you make up your mind/Woman so weary, sweet cause of pain/You make love, you break love/It’s all the same/You know it, don’t you?” Again, this certainly comes across as being a song about someone who is dealing with a difficult situation with another person. This is likely to connect with listeners even more than anything else in this album, lyrically speaking. When it is considered along with the other discussed lyrical content and that featured in the rest of the album, that whole does just as much as the album’s musical content to make sure this album appeals to the band’s targeted audiences. When the musical and lyrical content is considered along with the album’s sequencing, all three elements ensure even more, listeners’ engagement and entertainment. That engagement and entertainment will lead the noted audiences to agree that Eye for an Eye is worth hearing at least once.
Hudu Akil’s debut album Eye for an Eye is a presentation that will appeal to a very targeted audience – stoner rock and garage punk fans. The album’s musical arrangements play directly into that appeal. The record’s lyrical content plays directly into that appeal, too. When the record’s musical and lyrical content is considered along with its sequencing, the whole of those elements make the album a work that the band’s targeted audiences will find worth hearing at least once. Eye for an Eye is available now. More information on the album is available along with all of the band’s latest news at:
Website: http://www.huduakil.bandcamp.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/huduakil
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