A Weapon To Use On Strangers

Now here is something. There was a period a few months ago there wasnt anything that I could do without getting me a fix of A Place To Bury Strangers. I was hunting far and wide for B-sides, remixes and rarities, a few of which I shared with your fine selves.

From that point, I moved on, but have kept dipping my toes in their abrasive version of shoegaze nihilism. I pretty much thought Id have to wait until the New Yorkers brought out their next album.

Or maybe not...

I have been listening to Austin, Texas duo Bloody Knives for about a month now. Its pretty rude of me to have kept em from you really, so Im finally imparting their album Burn It All Down. Despite labelling themselves as electropunk, what with the use of drum machine/laptop/keyboard/noise and all, the first five seconds of opening track 'Tell Me Im Wrong' had me swooning for APTBS's 2009 classic Exploding Head. And as this album progresses, the foreboding sense of dread and doom dealt with demonic efficiency and mirthless glee accentuated this notion. That said, this is not just a homage - the industrial dirges that spark tracks like 'No One Else' infuses the album with ever darker images, whilst the electronic flourishes on 'Close' and 'No One Hears' comes out like a slightly less manic Death From Above covering Joy Division. This is a very impressive release, imbued with the right amount of attitude and aggression to ensure repeated listens - even moreso if you're intending a night filled with narcotic fuel and a trip down the rabbithole.

Burn It All Down is out now on Killredrocket Records - grab a digital copy here. If you do decide to hunt down a physical (limited edition) copy of the album, be prepared - it is an amazing package due to the band's emphasis on the art being as much a telling factor of the music than the music itself. Well worth it.

Bloody Knives - No One Else

Bloody Knives - Hands Around Your Neck