Known for effortlessly blending noise rock reminiscent of old-school Amphetamine Reptile bands with the raw and aggressive nature of modern hardcore, KEN Mode has become one of the most devastating bands in the underground. Formed in September of 1999, this crushing Canadian trio has released 3 full-length records. KEN Mode are no strangers to the road; with full tours, many times over, spanning Canada, the United States, and Europe with the likes of Pelican, Daughters, the End, Engineer,...
Read more »
Known for effortlessly blending noise rock reminiscent of old-school Amphetamine Reptile bands with the raw and aggressive nature of modern hardcore, KEN Mode has become one of the most devastating bands in the underground. Formed in September of 1999, this crushing Canadian trio has released 3 full-length records. KEN Mode are no strangers to the road; with full tours, many times over, spanning Canada, the United States, and Europe with the likes of Pelican, Daughters, the End, Engineer, Buried Inside, Gaza and Taint; and various regional dates with Mastodon, Burnt By The Sun, Baroness, Cursed, 3 Inches of Blood, PsyOpus, Propagandhi, Despised Icon, Razor, and Ion Dissonance, to name a few; 2011 is poised to be the year of KEN Mode's divide and conquer strategy in aggressive music.
KEN Mode will release ‘Venerable,’ their latest slab of brutality via Profound Lore Records on March 15, 2011. The album was produced by the legendary Kurt Ballou (Converge, Trap Them, Torche) at GodCity Studios and mastered by Alan Douches at West West Side. Next up will be a heavy schedule of touring – the band has made plans to tear through North America with Canadian brethren Fuck the Facts for a spring tour as well as stops at SXSW and more that will be announced soon. Vocalist and guitarist Jesse Matthewson comments: “Most bands get their road work done when they're children then grow up and get real jobs. Well, KEN Mode's doing the opposite. We had limited touring from 2002-2008 between summer sessions and spring breaks while getting university degrees; then specialty degrees in business, accounting and design. Apparently we like to punish ourselves.”
KEN Mode also follows suit in the lineage of forward thinking heavy music to come out of the Great White North – what you might hear if Voivod and Cursed had a baby that started a noise-rock band. Songs like “Batholith” and “Book of Muscle” cling to the traditions of hardcore music that resonate with fans of Converge or Trap Them while “A Wicked Pike” takes on spastic noise rock elements, and “Flight of the Echo Hawk” pushes forth as a mind-bending instrumental masterpiece, clearly influenced by the post- rock movement of the 2000s. Also “Venerable” features artwork and design courtesy of Josh Graham, known for his artwork with such bands as Neurosis, A Storm Of Light, Shrinebuilder, and most recently Soundgarden.
Brothers Jesse and Shane Matthewson have held down the fort that is KEN Mode for the past 11 years and are now joined by Thérèse Lanz (Mares of Thrace) on bass. The story of KEN Mode takes an interesting turn when you look into the background of its members – both of the Matthewson brothers are accountants, Shane a Chartered Accountant, and Lanz is a web developer. Additionally, Jesse has taken on the extremely intense and respected training regimen of Muay Thai fighting. “A lot of bands are obsessed with a life of excess, we prefer to eat Thai food and discuss the latest scientific breakthroughs,” Matthewson adds. Driven more than ever by the music they have created, this power trio has decided to take a leap of faith and quit their day jobs to fully pursue their careers in music.
KEN Mode is more focused than ever and will be difficult to ignore in 2011. With undoubtedly their best album to date and a yearning for the road, the band looks to be unstoppable. Expect the unexpected, prepare to bang your head and revel in the awe- inspiring new album ‘Venerable’, out March 15!
Domestic
