For a band who only formed in 2010, Waterford foursome Kodakid gone from strength to strength since their beginnings just over a year ago. From a support slot with the Noisettes at a Manchester music festival, to being finalists in a competition jointly hosted by TV3 and the Irish Daily Mail, the band have gained fans from their home-base around the sunny south-east and beyond. Impressive as these plaudits are, the proof of the pudding is in the eating, and their two-track EP (named after the title track) is delicious.
‘Low 7’ is said title track, and combines indie with the blues of being broke, doing nothing with your life, whilst going out and getting drunk to break up the monotony. Carrying a funky bass-line throughout, strong vocals from Kev Power, and an a capella backing to break and build the song up again to a crunching finale, the song had this reviewer’s head nodding. The guitar of Alex Soikans really shows off his talent as a guitarist, whilst being hidden enough in the song that it doesn’t overpower or take away from the rest of the group. Instead you hear a well-oiled unit performing a Raconteurs-meets-Black-Keys rock out.
Second track ‘Pray (For Some Luck)’ picks up where the last track left off. A much grittier tune than the title track, it already sounds like a live favourite, the song to finish the night off with. The one detraction I have is that it sounds like it’s around thirty seconds too long towards the end. It would benefit the track a lot more to either continue with the tempo that runs through the track, or simply stop it while the going is good. Instead the song fizzles out just when you think it’s going to kick in again. Despite this, it’s only a minor complaint, and this EP is one I will listen to again. With two strong songs on this debut EP, Kodakid have a great foundation to build upon and with a bit more time will hopefully build on this early promise.
Low 7 can be downloaded for free through the band’s Facebook page.