Echoes Of Unfortunate Times. Kant

With Echoes Of Unfortunate Times today we focus on rock. Part psychedelic, part classic, part symphonic with a little shredding as well. Kant is not afraid to make a lot of noise, nor to reference what came before to make its point. The title of the album can be seen as somewhat euphemistic in 2026, as I, as someone a few decades older than Kant's members, see echoes from disastrous times right in front of me every day. People died (horribly), their (grand)children forget and some of them see their chance and take it.

I do not know if Kant is referring to this with the title of its new album. The music holds some urgency anyway. The album opens in a great way with 'Faces In The Fog'. The song holds elements of 1969-1970 rock when the flute all of a sudden was an instrument to be used in rock. Here in NL for example in that great number 1 hitsingle, 'Back Home' by Golden Earring, but also in the more blues oriented Bintangs' hits 'Ridin' On The L&N' and 'Travellin' In The USA'. 'Faces In The Fog' is more than that quiet interlude. The song rocks out tremendously. Anyone not convinced of the quality Kant presents here, does not like this kind of music. It is this simple. The song takes you through many forms of rock in a successful way.

Kant is Marius Seidel (Guitar, Vocals, Flute), Nicolas Jordan (Guitar), Elena Strähle (Bass) and Bryan Göbel (Drums ). The band hails from Aschaffenburg in Germany, a town between Frankfurt am Main and Würzburg. With Echoes Of Unfortunate Times the band released its third record. As I'm not familiar with the previous records, I can only assume that the music is indeed more direct.

Photo: Jan Vornholt

There certainly are very direct parts, but, what appeals to me is the changes in the mood that Kant is able to interlace its music with. Take the fourth song, 'Mystic Mountain'. The mood change is as mystic as it is different. The fairly short instrumental is exchanged for the onslaught of 'Avalanche'. From ultra quiet to an explosion of sound. 'Avalanche' rocks hard but comes with strong melodies. Kant simply knows what a song takes to be interesting at a few levels. 'Digital Beam' turns into a powerful, slower rhythm driven psychedelic rock track. Once again the song explodes later on.

It is this diversity that makes Echoes Of Unfortunate Times stand out for me. Before the two singles that preceded Echoes Of Unfortunate Times Kant was a new name for me. No longer. It's time that more people in NL discover the band as well, allowing it to tour over here.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

 

You can listen to and order Echoes Of Unfortunate Times here:

https://kantmusic.bandcamp.com/album/echoes-of-unfortunate-times