Knives – What We See In Their Eyes 12″ EP (Hound Gawd! Records)

The outstanding Bristol-based group Knives has recently released “What We See In Their Eyes,” a new extended play carrying six exceptional compositions. The band and Hound Gawd Records heavily promoted this EP with “Headcase” and “Doppelgänger,” two excellent tracks that will appeal to everyone even remotely interested in expertly composed and flawlessly performed underground music. For those who might not know, Knives combines many complementary music genres to illustrate such rich and luxurious sonic imagery. Perhaps modern post-punk comes to mind first, but you’ll notice how hardcore punk, punk rock, and noise rock found their way into this sonic equation. The combination of these styles sounds amazing, and Knives is probably the only one who completely nailed blending aggression, ferocity, and rawness of hardcore with post-punk orchestration and aesthetics. The best part is that everything sounds well incorporated, cohesive, and precise.

With the initial notes and beats, you’ll notice these folks are not joking around with their music. Each composition arrives with a perfect structure, garnered with many intricate segments, brilliant ideas, and outstanding musicianship. The dual vocals play a significant role in this sonic equation. You’ll hear how the male vocalist delivers powerful shouts and screams while the female vocalist brings more than necessary melodic edge that makes this track even more interesting. These vocal dualities can be heard on many recordings brought by the renowned anarcho and post-punk bands during the late seventies and early eighties, but Knives brought this style to an entirely new level. In the meantime, the marvelous guitar interplay shapes the adequate backdrop for all the vocals to shine upon. You’ll notice a comprehensive collection of raw, abrasive, fuzzy abrasive chord progressions and riffs, odd noises and sonic maneuvers, melodies, harmonies, themes, and leads. The experimentation goes beyond comprehension, making this album a fresh and unique experience worth listening to repeatedly.

This release wouldn’t sound this good without a powerful rhythm section. The equally complex, vividly hearable, warm-sounding basslines rumble beneath the guitar layers, offering more than necessary heaviness, clarity, and depth while binding all the instrumentations with rhythmic patterns. The excellent drumming performance based upon expertly assembled and flawlessly performed beats, breaks, fills, and other percussive acrobatics keeps the remainder of the band in line while dictating groove and pace. Each band member provides the best possible performance, creating a tremendous wall of sound that will appeal to even the pickiest post-punk fans. It’s hard to pick favorites here, but tracks like “Happiness,” “Doppelgänger,” “Dead In The Eyes,” and “Sadness” stand out from the remainder of the EP. You should check out Knives and their latest material as soon as possible because these folks know how to write and compose catchy, memorable, engaging tracks that will resonate with you long after the EP ends. “What We See In Their Eyes” arrives on translucent and black vinyl, adorned with a striking visual identity. Head to Hound Gawd! Records for more information about ordering.