Knelt Before – Make Your Own

Yesterday, I posted the news about the upcoming EP release by Knelt Before, an Oregon-based melodic hardcore quartet. The band reached me out during the weekend via email, so I listened to their introductory piece, Make Your Own, and decided to write a couple of lines about it. If you paid close attention to our pages yesterday, you probably stumbled upon the news about this single. Knelt Before consists of experienced musicians involved in several bands, such as LoveHateHero, Second Coming, What Lies Within, and Tall Dark Whimsy. What caught my eye the most was their DIY approach to everything. If you check out their social media, you’ll notice that these folks even print their t-shirts by themselves. What’s more punk rock than that?

The song commences with harmonious singalongs, four-chord progressions, and mid-tempo rhythmic sequences. You’ll probably get the impression this is a straightforward melodic punk rock song, but the band easily transits into classic mid-tempo hardcore punk waters as soon as the verse starts. The intro also serves as a chorus, but besides ear-appealing chants, there are lyrics sung in a more calmy, soothing, melodic tone. It’s good to mention that these riffs are tight, but the heaviness comes from vividly hearable basslines as well. The drumming is energetic as much as mid-tempo allows. There’s also an excellent beatdown hardcore segment that introduces even more aggression and heaviness into the dominantly melodic composition.

Another thing that also caught my attention is how Knelt Before avoided all the cliches of contemporary melodic hardcore, melodic punk rock, and underground music in general. You would probably expect another polished, clean, mellow melodic track, but that’s not the case with Make Your Own. Quite the contrary, Knelt Before purposely aimed for a more abrasive, raw, gritty, heavily distorted sound where you can hear all the fuzziness of guitars and noisy crackling from the continuous splashing over the cymbals. This noise serves as a more than appropriate contrast to the melodic aspect of the song. Make Your Own represents more than adequate introduction to their upcoming EP, set for release on cassette at the end of the summer. The vinyl record should be available shortly after. Head over to Knelt Before Bandcamp page and take a listen.