Vangough
“Kingdom of Ruin”
Nightmare Records
Tracks: 15
Our Score: 2 out of 5 stars
“Kingdom of Ruin” is the newest release from the Oklahoma City based band Vangough. “Kingdom of Ruin” will be the bands 3rd release which features an interesting concept related to a man stepping between two realities and his link to the newly discovered world. The album is a follow up to the bands two previous albums “Manikin Parade” and “Game On!”.
Vangough’s “Kingdom of Ruin” was an odd listen to say the least. The album screams concept album as each track spirals down a different path in an effort to tell the underlying story. For me as a listener there was just too much going on making it hard to decipher what I was listening to. The songs on “Kingdom of Ruin” all had very solid instrumentation however I do question the structure in some of the songs. I did find a few highlights such as “Requiem for a Fallen King” which was a pretty straight forward rock tune that featuring and very Santana-ish inspired solo. I also really enjoyed the softness of the song “Alice”.
Not being a huge fan of concept albums did sway my opinion of Vangough’s “Kingdom of Ruin”. I will say though that the album is not a bad album by any means. If concept albums are your thing then this album would surely be a great addition to your music collection. However if you are looking for an album that is easily accessible and straight forward then Vangough’s “Kingdom of Ruin” may not be the best choice.
Track Listing:
1.) Disloyal
2.) Choke Faint Drown
3.) Abandon Me
4.) Drained
5.) Kingdom of Ruin
6.) Frailty
7.) The Transformation
8.) The Rabbit Kingdom
9.) Stay
10.) Sounds of Wonder
11.) A Father’s Love
12.) Requiem For a Fallen King
13.) An Empire Shattered
14.) Alice
15.) The Garden Time Forgot