Kezia

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Kezia
Studio album by Protest the Hero
Released	Canada: August 30 2005 USA: April 4 2006
Recorded	2004 - 2005 Hamilton, Ontario
Genre	Mathcore[1][2], Progressive Metal[3], [1][2][3]
Length	44:03
Label	Canada: Underground Operations USA: Vagrant Records
Producer	Julius "Juice" Butty
Professional reviews
All Music Guide link Metal Storm link Metal Review link Absolutepunk.net (88/100) link
Protest the Hero chronology
A Calculated Use of Sound Re-release (2004) Kezia (2005) Fortress (2008)

Kezia (pronounced /kɛˈzaɪə/) is the debut full-length release by the band Protest the Hero.

[edit] Overview

Production began in late 2004 overseen by Julius "Juice" Butty as their producer-in-chief (known for his work on Alexisonfire's gold-selling album Watch Out!). After mounting anticipation from fans, Kezia was released in Canada on August 30, 2005 selling 500 copies in the first week and went on to sell more than 5000 copies in the next 2-3 weeks, not including off-stage sales at the several release parties and shows the band played the week of release ^[4]. The American release on April 4, 2006 debuted with an online contest where the first one hundred album purchases were rewarded with an additional album - A Calculated Use of Sound, the 2004 reissue.

In addition, the song "Bury the Hatchet" is available for download on the XBox 360 version of Guitar Hero II. "Divinity Within" is also featured on the soundtrack to NHL 07.

[edit] Story Line

Kezia is essentially a concept album, labeled a "situationist requiem" by the lead singer Rody Walker^[5]. It is the elegy of a young woman after whom the album is titled. The story is chronicled in the perspective of three characters: The Prison Priest, The Prison Guard/Gunman, and Kezia herself. Each character is designated a section containing three songs, with a single retrospective finale concluding the album. The three characters represent an aspect of the bandmembers themselves, endowing artistic fingerprints to a deeply personal album. ^[6]

The story (which is admitted to be heavily influenced by the works of Dostoevsky ^[7]) of Kezia was conceived by bassist and lyricist Arif Mirabdolbaghi when the band members were in grade eleven (2002-2003), and recording was finished in 2005 when they were at the ages of eighteen and nineteen.

The name "Kezia" is a derivative of "Keziah," the name of one of Job's daughters in the Bible.

[edit] Reception

The album generally received positive reviews from critics. Corey Apar of All Music Guide states: "Sounding as if maximum emotion were packed into every second possible, each note of Kezia bleeds urgent passion — from the searing vocals of Rody Walker to blistering guitar leads to acoustic midsong breaks to compelling harmonies and growls alike."^[3] Furthermore, Kezia received a nomination from Toronto based radio station 102.1 the edge for their 2005 CASBY Awards for Favorite New Indie Release^[8], and received a glowing review in Time Canada magazine.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Videos

Protest the Hero's second music video, for the song "Blindfolds Aside", was released in November 2005. The video features Protest the Hero as both condemned victims and executioners. The condemned are wearing blindfolds for the majority of the video and playing their instruments whereas the executioners are dressed as soldiers. The video contains the song shortened by 35 seconds, removing some instrumental sections that appear on the album version. "Blindfolds Aside" receives light rotation on the music television station Much Music, but greater exposure on the brother channel Much Loud. The video was filmed in Toronto, Ontario.

The band filmed their third video for the song "Heretics and Killers" in mid-February, 2006. It was released in April 2006. The video features the band dressed as the flying monkeys from The Wizard of Oz who have lost their jobs as flying monkeys as a result of the evil witch's death. The video switches from scenes of the band playing together in a small room to individual band members begging and doing street jobs. The video is shot entirely in sepia until an explosive instrumental break-out in which vibrant colours are used for the remainder of the video.

On May 17, 2007, the band shot a video for their final single, "The Divine Suicide of K". It features a more gothic setting where the members of the group sing in an imaginary bar for female vampires.

[edit] Track listing

Part I: Prison Priest persona

1. "No Stars Over Bethlehem" - 3:50
2. "Heretics and Killers" - 3:11
3. "Divinity Within" - 4:34

Part II: Prison Guard persona

4. "Bury the Hatchet" - 3:26
5. "Nautical" - 2:59
6. "Blindfolds Aside" - 6:01

Part III: Persona of Kezia herself

7. "She Who Mars the Skin of Gods" - 3:53
8. "Turn Soonest to the Sea" - 6:23
9. "The Divine Suicide of K." - 5:12

Part IV: Finale

10. "A Plateful of Our Dead" - 4:29

Note: An earlier version of the band's website listed the eighth track as "Turn the Soonest to the Sea", but the tracklisting on the back of some versions of the album omit the first "the".

[edit] Personnel

[edit] Band members

• Rody Walker - vocals
• Tim Millar - guitar
• Moe Carlson - drums
• Luke Hoskin - guitar, piano, vocals
• Arif Mirabdolbaghi - bass, vocals

[edit] Other personnel

• Jadea Kelly - vocals
• Paul Distefano - vocals
• Julius Butty - production, recording, mixing, additional vocals
• London Spicoluk - vocals, executive production
• Marco Bressette - additional guitars and string arrangements
• Joao Carvalho - mastering
• Garnet Armstrong - art direction and design
• Ivan Otis - photography

[edit] References