Album review: Austin rockers Kyote Radio drop debut LP August 27
On August 27, Kyote Radio will release their debut full-length album Real Crime.
By fall of 2019, Austin rock quartet, Kyote Radio (formerly Kalijah), had half of their debut LP recorded, and was performing a plethora of shows around town. In January of 2020, the four-piece returned to The Bubble Studios to reunite with legendary Austin music producer Frenchie Smith with the goal of completing the album and releasing it at some point in the spring of that year.
Kyote Radio consists of Jeff Arata, on guitar and backing vocals; Nick Smith strumming the bass and offering backup vocals; Dana Johnson on drums, and Micah Paredes on guitar, vox and lead vocals. The band received the masters of the recorded LP on March 13, 2020. With all that happened with the pandemic then, the band decided to hold back on the album’s release until this month.
With members hailing from California’s Bay Area to Kansas City, Indiana and Terlingua (West Texas), Kyote Radio delivers a cohesive, classic hard rock sound drenched in new Americana lore that reflect a wide range of influences with hard rock working as the common thread between the group.
Opening track, “Open Wide,” is a heavy-hitting number with banging chords, synchronized with passionately-delivered vocals. It sets a tone for the album in proper fashion. The final single released from Real Crime is “How High,” which initially slows the tempo a bit, but maintains the LP’s anxious, frustrated tone.
The title track, “Real Crime,” is an almost-bluesy tune that serves as commentary on the various injustices and forms of exploitation in modern society.
“Crooked Canyon” is a more contemplative track delivered with a self-examining, reflective tone, examining one’s environment as an analogy, and incorporating a stretch of electronica/HipHop instrumentation toward the end of the song.
“Waiting Around to Die” is the bluesy conclusion to the album, and neatly sums up the swirl of emotional content present throughout.
Altogether, Real Crime does more than just touch on classic rock themes well; it radiates socially conscious ideals, with each track tapping into a separate beat of modern America’s collective pulse. Paredes’ lyrics ooze with figurative language, and effortlessly deliver concepts in a poignant fashion. The song structure and instrumentation throughout the album work perfectly in fulfilling the driving motive of each component.
Fans can pre-order the digital album (and get access to singles right now) and/or reserve a limited run vinyl copy directly from Kyote Radio at Bandcamp.
2021 has been eventful for Kyote Radio, incorporating an additional guitarist, (Kyle Bellinger of LadyKiller), and announcing a series of shows. The band also made productive use of the time in lockdown, putting aside time to write new music. The group looks forward to recording again later in the year.
To commemorate the release of the Real Crime LP on August 27th, Kyote Radio will headline a vinyl release show at Independence Brewery featuring Mike Kiddoo. A limited number of short-run, 180g vinyl LPs will be available for purchase at the show.
Featured photo by Katie McDowell
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