Knocked Loose
You Won't Go Before You're Supposed To
*** out of *****
Starting with light clanging and dissonant sounds to open "Thirst" on Knocked Loose's newest album You Won't Go Before You're Supposed To, first time listeners might be tempted to turn up the volume to make sure it is playing. This would be a huge mistake as the band comes screeching in with stop/start frenzy, yelling wails, and metal madness, blistering ear drums along the way.
The Louisville, KY based outfit's third album is a crushing sonic assault that takes hints from various metal subgenres and melds them into a furious fist, smashing through speakers. The five piece. Bryan Garris - Vocals, Isaac Hale - Guitar, Cole Crutchfield - Guitar, Kevin Otten - Bass, Pac Sun - Drums have evolved in recent years to headlining metal status and You Won't Go Before You're Supposed To doubles down on the heavy tones and quirky changes.
The band seems to be experimenting with their sound while the delve into heaviness and results can be a bit mixed. Album closer "Sit & Mourn" is an exhale of noise, feedback and yells as band twist sonic dynamics. The forty five second assault of "Moss Covers All" has a weird musical break, that is resurrected at the beginning of "Take Me Home" which moves in an artistic direction even sampling country radio to end.
Even when the band delivers more straight ahead metal tunes, things are slightly off-kilter. Tracks like "Piece by Piece" and "Don't Reach For Me" get the groove going with head banging ferocity but shift and squirm interestingly. An odd note is the vocals of Garris, where other metal bands over do it to a laughable degree with the yelling and moaning, here the vocals can sound thin, straining at times which doesn't necessarily jive with the power backing him.
The band's raw aggression is evident on the pounding hardcore of "Slaughterhouse 2 (feat. Chris Motionless)" and "Suffocate (feat. Poppy)" which may be the best of the bunch with dramatic breaks, spoken word, thundering drums and sludgy bass. Another major highlight is the anti establishment religion song "Blinding Faith" which is huge and stomping in it's fury while unique percussion colors "The Calm That Keeps You Awake" giving the effort a Sepultura vibe.
Twisting metal genres to the breaking point while keeping a heavier than all hell foundation, elevates Knocked Loose's You Won't Go Before You're Supposed To above other standard and aggressive hardcore releases.
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