The Young Knives - Voices of Animals and Men CD/DVD Review

I have really enjoyed this disc and the bonus DVD adds to the fun. Musically, The Young Knives sound somewhat like The Jam or Stiff Little Fingers but they also incorporate the start/stop rhythms made popular by Gang of 4. Guitarist Henry Dartnall and his brother "House of Lords" have solid voices for this type of music (think Jimmy Pursey and/or Bruce Foxton) and share and trade off vocals throughout this disc.

This disc is well produced but shouldn't be confused with the slick pop sounds of Green Day or Franz Ferdinand -- many of these songs are played with the same urgency that The Jam had in their day. The songwriting is solid across this disc and the band is able to change and explore different sounds and tempos without losing their core sound. All of this keeps the disc interesting from start to finish.

There wasn't a lyric sheet with the disc so I haven't yet made out all of the words to the songs but what I have heard is interesting. A number of the songs are narratives in the style of the Stan Ridgeway-era Wall of Voodoo and highlight the band's dark and wicked sense of humor.

The DVD is quite enjoyable as well. It features 6 songs from a 2005 performance in London and includes two previous unreleased tracks. There are also some Monkees-ish non-sequiturs between tracks that add to the band's charm. There are also 9 videos that follow the band's live concert that play upon the band's humor and highlight their strong songwriting skills.

As this disc is priced lower than most single CDs ($14 on Amazon), I would consider this a "must have".

Previous Posts:
Review and Pictures from the Band's Show at Luna Lounge, Brooklyn [link]

Links:
The Young Knives Main Website [link]
The Young Knives MySpace Page [link]

The Young Knives - Luna Lounge, NYC March 20, 2007

The Young Knives put on a fabulous show last night at Luna Lounge. I strongly recommend catching their show at Annex on Friday night, which is also the last night of the tour. (Tomorrow's show at the Mercury Lounge is sold out) The band will be playing big rooms soon so catch them in the clubs while you still can.



TimeOut New York dismissed the band as being Clash wannabes. This description isn't even close. The band has a unique sound that I would compare to a cross between Gang of 4, The Jam and Stiff Little Fingers. Before last night, I hadn't seen a bass player whom I would compare to Bruce Foxton.





I hate to slag another band in a review but I can't help comparing this show to The View's show at the Mercury in January. What a night and day difference....The View played a 30 minute set to a sold-out room and I spent the first fifteen minutes wondering why they sounded like a Star Spangles cover band. The Young Knives played almost an hour to a half-full room and balls-out rocked from the first song to the last.


I never see multiple nights on any band's tour but last night's show was that impressive that I am very tempted to hit the Annex show on Friday. If tickets are still available, I'd get them quickly.

The Young Knives debut CD is out on Rykodisc (in the US) and is packaged with a bonus DVD that contains a live performances from a show in London along with a number of the band's videos. I'll be posting a review of the CD/DVD in the next few days.

Young Knives Show @ Luna Lounge Rescheduled

I was expecting this...

Luna Lounge has postponed Saturday night's Young Knives show until March 20th. The acts that were scheduled to open on Saturday, Foreign Islands and Soft, will be playing for free that night. I don't think I have ever seen a show canceled because neither of the co-headliners (The View were originally on the bill) couldn't get into the country.

For anyone looking for a great show on Saturday, check out Unearthly Trance (Relapse Records) at Water Street Lounge. Tickets are only $10.