Review Summary: A fitting end for an absolute fucking clown.
It's hardly much of a revelation to find out that Knocked Loose's third full-length offering is stupidly heavy. That in and of itself isn't all that interesting, but it's more in the way
how Kentucky's metallic hardcore darlings achieve their apocalyptic levels of brutality that makes
You Won't Go... such a quaking listening experience. The pingy trash metal snare, the cacophonous guitar layering that turns every breakdown into a ***ing skyscraper implosion, the absolutely haunting banshee-shriek that Poppy lets out in the tail-end of the reggaeton (yes, it works) beatdown found in highlight "Suffocate" or the fact that Bryan Garris somehow sounds even more riled up than previous releases; this time sharing vocal duties with Isaac Hale and recently added six-stringer Nicko Calderon. Even more impressive is how Knocked Loose has – through carefully crafted imagery and soundscapes – achieved a level of world-building rarely found in the genre, beautifully evident in the Ari Aster inspired music videos and the ominous droning that bookends all of them. Garris and co. are full-on visionaries with world domination on their mind and have successfully continued the horror-sensibilities hinted at with 2021's excellent
A Tear in The Fabric of Life EP and last year's masterful
Upon Loss singles.
At only 10 tracks and 27 minutes,
You Won't Go... is a very brief but pummeling cascade of roaring guitars with the power of a gatling gun behind them and the rhythm section seems hell-bent on decimating one's eardrums with each passing second. In a slightly risky move, Knocked Loose has had a change of leadership behind the console, with Drew Fulk stepping up to the plate to deliver the most sonically eerie collection of songs thus far in the band's discography, in place of long-time producer Will Putney. The change has luckily paid off wholesale, as the band has never sounded more dialed in than this in their decade long career. From the absolute flamethrower opener "Thirst" and the crushing bounciness of "The Calm That Keeps You Awake", the band is firing on all cylinders with few moments of serenity and respite from the all the audible, world-ending chaos. That is, until the band throws in the curveball "Take Me Home"; a densely layered terror interlude with all the quirks of a Slasher-film motif, stringing the listener along for one Knocked Loose's most adventurous detours to date; so much so that I wish that I lasted far longer than it does.
Luckily, closer "Sit & Mourn" sees the band taking a daring leap of faith, introducing more somber, clean guitar melodies that's only been briefly hinted at in the past; here fully explored in a post-metal-esque swan song that successfully drives the record's overall themes of loss, religion, grief and hatred home in a sweeping five-minute epic worthy of being hailed as one the best tracks in the band's career. Although they can (clearly) pull off writing two-and-a-half minute heaters packed with bludgeoning chugs and monstrous drum patterns, it's the changes of pace carefully sprinkled throughout
You Won't Go... that make it an immediately more memorable and powerful listen than
A Different Shade of Blue and
Laugh Tracks. I'd personally love to see the band broadening their palette moving forward but for now,
You Won't Go... is an excellent stepping-stone in Knocked Loose's seemingly unstoppable crusade into the mainstream. Long may the arf reign.
