After the release of their debut full length album Laugh Tracks made rounds amongst the Hardcore and Metal communities online, rising to the top of people’s favorites list for 2016, Louisville, Kentucky-based Hardcore act Knocked Loose had fans locked into their dismantling rush of aggression and pummeling breakdowns. The band received some much-deserved attention for displaying concrete crossover elements of hard grooves, beatdowns, and a fury of two-stepping rhythms. Where that leaves us today is eagerly awaiting the release of their sophomore effort A Different Shade of Blue, due out on August 23rd via Pure Noise Records/Sony Music Australia. What Knocked Loose have been able to bring to the table since the release of their debut full length is a newfound fluidity within the structure of their songs, putting emphasis on the range of extreme Metal influences within their riffs and other musical sections, while making things a whole lot heavier. With A Different Shade of Blue, Knocked Loose have developed a bolder and more rugged tone, generating an even more colossal atmosphere for their breakdowns to hit harder and their words to abrasively slice straight through the ears of every listener.
Having recorded with the infamous Will Putney (Thy Art is Murder, Fit for an Autopsy, Vein, Harm’s Way, etc) once again, there is a significant sonic force that A Different Shade of Blue offers right off the bat, as opening track “Belleville” goes straight for the throat upon ignition. After the words “To make me fucking care,” are screamed, Knocked Loose tap into that colossal energy, employing an absolutely monstrous tone. Offered as the third single off the record, “Trapped in the Grasp of my Memory” smashes through the speakers and offers crashing waves of various hard-hitting grooves. The track weaves in and out of breakdowns classically garnished with that dissonance that Hardcore fans crave, except crossing that over with some old-school Death Metal application around the two-minute mark.
This album delivers components of this band’s sound that go beyond the raw standard of Hardcore for the track “In the Walls,” which crosses over more of that Death Metal influence with varied elements of feedback and noise. This track offers a dynamic level of potency to the sinister story being told and is a track that definitely stands out.
I believe that Knocked Loose have found their stride and have become much more well-rounded throughout this record, whether it be through the seething turbulence of “A Serpent’s Touch” featuring Emma Boster (Dying Wish), the thrashing nature of “Denied by Fate,” or the pulverizing impact of the powerful “…And Still I Wander South.” And this wouldn’t be a proper review without mentioning the mammoth introduction to “Forget Your Name,” a song featuring none other than Keith Buckley (Every Time I Die). The common thread throughout this album is that each part of every song is delivered with purpose, making every song a force to be reckoned with. Vocalist Bryan Garris continues to scream at a higher register, adding a whole new level of impassioned screams to the new material, pairing perfectly with guitarist Isaac Hale’s lower end growls (on select songs).
A Different Shade of Blue creates a whole new identity for Knocked Loose, solidifying new heights of aggression, bolder tone, riff variation, and all around explosiveness within their songs. This is a beast of an album that keeps the hype going for this band to continue to do great things and please the underground fans that comprise the Hardcore and Metal communities. What I love about this record is the amount of energy and personality Knocked Loose put into each track and that energy streamlines from the start until the very last seconds of closing track “Misguided Son.”