the kill circuit - Low transit

The Kill Circuit

Low Transit
self-released; 2013

3.6 out of 5

By Jamie Funk

The Kill Circuit is a hard rock band from Norfolk, VA that has been together since 2010 and recently released their first full-length album called Low Transit. They play hard rock that is on the verge of metal not unlike bands like Queen Of The Stone Age and And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead. The production is good; the band is technically proficient and they have enough creativity to make this album worth your time to check out. The band isn't afraid to experiment on occasion and get out of their hard rock roots. It creates a better experience from start to finish as you may have your ears perked to hear what else the band might have up their sleeves. The band consists of guitar player/singer Mike Ragan, drummer Joey Rudacil, bassist/singer EJ Toudt and guitar player Pete Raffetto. 

The first thing you hear from their album on the song “Search for Echoes “ is a warm comforting descending ambience that gets quickly bombarded by high end distorted guitars and before you know it the band is in full effect rocking out pretty hard. It’s a solid song and a good introduction to the band. The song isn’t short of the amount of changes it goes through and it shows the band's desire to not make a single dull moment. I’m also pretty sure I heard some cowbell at one point, which is always welcome in my book. 

One of the hardest songs on the album is the Soundgarden inspired “50 below.” The singer tries to do his best Chris Cornell with some success. “To Thin To Show” was a nice change of pace musically as they open up their palette a bit and weave in melodic clean guitar before stomping on their distortion pedals. The drumming is top notch on this one and carries the energy of the verse. 

The album closes with seven-plus-minute epic “I Am The Voyeur.” It’s a song that is a hard rock fan’s wet dream; plenty of hard riffs, guitar lead, crashing drums as well as the best vocal melody on the album. 

Low Transit is a solid debut with a couple of notable songs. My only minor complaint is the vocal performances weren't always flattering but most of the time they were sufficient. I think The Kill Circuit has room for improvement but Low Transit establishes a good foundation for the band to build upon. And if you are big into hard rock bands this is something you will definitely want to check out.

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