From Bandcamp, “KING GARCIA creates instrumental, cinematic music that ponders at red-dawn skies. At times, the music feels soothing like a hot summer afternoon that progresses into a dark and ominous cold evening. The scene zooms-out and into the presence of light, a moody, mellow spark at the end of a long tunnel. “Hamelin,” the band’s debut album, was recorded in Athens Greece. It is produced, mixed and mastered by the acclaimed producer Hector D. Tracking was done at Noisy King Music Residence and Eightyard studios.” The intro song “Prelude: Rats!” is very short and leads to “Anise.” The combination of traditional Middle Eastern sounds with electronic and later with steady drums and guitars is interesting. There are no vocals, and you get an upbeat vibe and strong musicianship from the composition. “Sweat” is where things might get a little weird. Let’s start with the efficacy of clarinet in Metal…I say why not, but it does make for a strange sound. However, the band is good at intermixing in with heavy riffs, as well as varying the landscape of sound a few times throughout. “Magnolia” has nice somber tones in the guitars and trumpets. Trumpet is one of those instruments that can be somber or majestic, and it is melancholy here.

 We are back to clarinet in the title track, as well as some entering tension. The seas and the sky are constantly shifting here, and that is often the mark of strong musicianship. The band keeps you guessing what might be around the corner, and at times, it is led by guitar riffs, other times bass, and other instruments. “We Echo” has political spoken words in the beginning, in keeping with some of the themes the band discussed in their EPK. The song is tentative at first, and sonority is added slowly, until it all crashes down with a big crescendo of weight. Thick bass notes and screeching leads add to the sound. “Closer” opens with tension that lessens as clean guitars carry things forward. From there, they mix in many elements into the stew, and they come together nicely.

“The Day We Lost Everything” closes the album, and it’s nine minutes long. It begins with passing thunder and light rain. From there, it is again constantly shifting and changing, always with a thick backbone at the bottom end. Let’s start with the positive, and that is both the strong musicianship of the band as well as their varied song structures. Without vocals, it can be difficult to get across a sense of cohesion and understanding from the music, but they do. That being said, some of the sounds were just a bit too far out of the box for me in terms of what I think of when I think of Metal music. But, as with any album that is off the beaten path, I encourage you to listen to it yourself and see if it resonates with you.