The K Word - EP

After reading through the K Word’s biography, my skepticism rose as my eyes zigzagged down their press release. Reason being, the K Word proudly proclaim their influence as both Tortoise and Fugazi. But as their sophomore release, the appropriately titled EP, skittered into my ears, the brooding post-rock of Tortoise and the slash-and-burn punk of Fugazi were pretty much the only two notable influences the surfaced on my mind, despite the worlds of difference between both bands. “Market Eight,” the K Word’s opening tune, is the heaviest and most kinetic track of the four on EP and it strikes into the exact median between indie-rock and post-hardcore. Seemingly to counteract the initial response to the EP’s material, the K Word quickly launch into an instrumental track that, yes, recalls Tortoise in more ways than one. However, the disc’s last two songs expand on the two different aesthetics presented while effectively filtering in prog tendencies that often appear more like Dredg songs than the genre’s usual algebraic leanings. Ultimately, the K Word are ambitious and striving toward even brighter musical paths, but haven’t exactly arrived there yet. Especially for only being the second EP released under their moniker, this disc finds the K Word crossing the intersection of punk and post-rock, and energy and progressiveness with laser guided precision. [www.thekword.com]