album: It’s Time
artist: King’s Wit
genre: progressive rock
release date: January 30, 2021
star rating: two out of five

review by Levi Yager

Kicking off 2021, the Wichita duo King’s Wit has released its debut EP titled It’s Time. This is definitely a unique EP that will probably have the most appeal strictly in progressive rock circles. The best part about It’s Time has to be the exceptional musicianship on display; you can’t go a single minute without hearing a cool guitar riff or a sweet bass groove. It’s far from a perfect release, but it has its moments.

In a bold move, King’s Wit starts the record with the 13-minute title track. This is a sign of what’s to come, as none of the five songs are under six minutes long. While there’s nothing inherently wrong with that, unfortunately, most of them end up overstaying their welcome and could easily be sliced to somewhere between four and eight minutes, depending on the song. They often contain excessive repetition or sections that simply go on for too long. Consequently, It’s Time is occasionally boring, and I believe it would benefit from either shortening tracks or reworking some at their current lengths.

I enjoyed quite a few aspects of this EP, but I also took issue with the vocals. They’re just inconsistent in quality (and sometimes difficult to understand). This becomes especially apparent since most of the EP is instrumental, and that’s where the band really shines anyway. Honestly, I would rather listen to a fully instrumental version of It’s Time, and I’d be excited to see if King’s Wit goes that direction in the future. Personally, I think it would improve their sound.

It’s Time is ultimately a tough egg to crack. There are segments of pure genius interspersed with parts that just drag the songs down, creating a mixed listening experience. I’d recommend checking it out if you’re super into prog. rock, though. You’ll find some interesting rhythmic changes, heavy sections, jazzy spots and passionate playing from obviously talented dudes. With It’s Time, we can hear that King’s Wit has all the core ingredients for a great record, but they could do with altering the recipe a bit.