King Analog King Analog Review: Soaring

Multi-instrumentalist Joe Difonzo’s solo project, King Analog’s self-titled offering might not be for everyone, but if epic, face-melting guitar solos, and soaring rock arrangements are your speed, King Analog will knock your socks off.

The opening track, “Transporter,” lives up to its namesake. It instantly transports you to the psychedelic world of King Analog. A Tool-ish intro is like a warm greeting to the rest of the album. Which swiftly kicks off- and you- (in the face) with a nasty (in a good way) guitar solo. It’s got just enough blues fuzz to feel the late-60s psych-rock influence and the grandiosity of an Opeth track. 

The follow-up song, “Overdriver” turns the prog metal (and overdrive) dial up a few notches. It’s loud, it’s heavy, and it’s in your face. The song retains the previous’s Hendrix-esque style, especially in Difonzo’s guitar playing. The dude makes an axe sing…or wail like a demon, depending on who you’re asking. 

A couple of tunes later, “Rain” slows things down for an ambient, moody, and atmospheric cut. It’s a nice break from the intensity that rapidly built throughout the previous tracks. However, at 5:36 seconds, “Rain” lulls for just a little too long. Even though by prog metal standards, it’s no marathon.

From there on out the album just gets weirder, noisier, and more avant-garde. Whatever accessibility King Analog had going for it gets thrown out the window in favor of pushing the “prog” to the forefront. The back end of the collection is easily the most abstract and polarizing. 

King Analog by King Analog is only seven songs, but in classic prog metal fashion, stretches its run time to over a half-hour. If Difonzo’s goal was to show off his musical chops, call the man a guitar-wielding butcher. Though, it does fall into some of the stereotypical noise rock trappings. Upon a casual listen, songs tend to bleed into one another, without any distinct form.

That doesn’t hold King Analog back from delivering truly epic anthems that would fit perfectly as the soundtrack to a dystopian sci-fi adventure.