Kingfisher Sky: Walk The Plank

2022 marks the fifteenth year since Dutch progressive rock outfit Kingfisher Sky first appeared on the scene with their debut album Hallway Of Dreams. It also finds the band made up of Judith Rijnveld (vocals), Edo van der Kolk (guitars), Ivar de Graaf (drums), Erik van Ittersum (keys), Nick Verschoor (bass) and Maaike Peterse (violoncello) releasing their sixth studio offering, Walk The Plank.

It’s the title track which opens proceedings, a steady, intricate piece running with a heady atmosphere, and immediately highlighting the superb vocals from Rijnveld, her voice always able to run the gamut from full on attack to whispering angel. Musically the band play a loosely symphonic style of prog with an acoustic sounding base and here it’s a captivating point from where everything begins. “Rites Of Passage� follows, hypnotic percussion ticking and clicking mesmerisingly as the vocals swoop and soar, but there’s a much more foreboding feel here and one that offers clever juxtaposition to what came before. With both songs hovering around the three minute mark, they also, quite cleverly, don’t outstay their welcome.

The tone is given a more playful air by the acoustic guitar and piano of “All That Is Left�, which maybe comes across as a little too straight forward when held against the opening pair, but as it evolves, there’s a real depth here that draws you in, with Rijnveld revealing a powerful lower register. “Long Gone� strips things back further, voice and acoustic guitar the order of the day, and while both are expertly delivered, for me, the results aren’t quite as memorable as elsewhere on this EP, but the Spanish flavoured “Duerme Bien� quickly puts that right. The whirling dance of violoncello adding a flavour that plays off the flamenco style that evolves from this hugely engaging side-step.

Walk The Plank may be only five songs in length and clock in at around 25 minutes, but this EP is not afraid to make its presence felt, or to do so in a variety of styles. The results really are rather excellent and if walking the plank sounds like a step too far for you, let me assure you that Kingfisher Sky are well worth taking the plunge for.

Track Listing
1. Walk The Plank
2. Rites Of Passage
3. All That Is Left
4. Long Gone
5. Duerme Bien

Added: June 10th 2022
Reviewer: Steven Reid
Score:
Related Link: Kingfisher Sky @ bandcamp
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Language: english

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