Knuckledust

Songs Of Sacrifice

Written by: MAK on 08/04/2016 13:48:36

London’s biggest hardcore outfit Knuckledust are celebrating 20 years as a band by releasing a new album after four years without any new material. “Songs Of Sacrifice” aims to continue where the 2012 release “Bluffs, Lies & Alibis” left off by unleashing more of the macho hardcore that Knuckledust is known for.

The thing with Knuckledust is that their sound hasn’t changed much at all over the years, you know what you will get from them. Simplistic chugs and fun grooves with the occasional solo thrown on top, an aggressive attitude that is reflected in the vocals, the countless gang chants. All of which is performed with relentless energy and causes carnage at any show. It is everything that hardcore fans love and there is a reason the likes of Terror like to have them at their shows. That being said, if you’re not a fan of hardcore music, you probably won’t like this as much because it really is pretty one-dimensional in terms of influence.

“Humanity’s Nightmare” unleashes that expected aggression and energy aimed at how shit our society is. It’s a fierce opener to the album that can make you lose your shit and shout along, but the real stand out moment is when the music drops and the Pierre’s vocals through gritted teeth shout “How can you justify your killing in the name of peace?” before a breakdown to let all carnage ensue.

The heavy use of gang chants is a real stand out feature on this album, which is always fun as those are the parts of songs most fans learn first so they can sing them back live. The majority of songs on the album have them at some point though "Family Ties" opens with “We stick together, We stick together, We stick together as one. We fight together, We fight together, We fight together as one” repeated a couple of times in the intro, and then again as a chorus. Enforcing that sense of unity that hardcore loves to promote.

While a lot of this album is rather samey, there are some stand out tracks. Video track “Life Struggle” is probably the most anthemic of all on this album. Pierre’s aggression in the verse is counteracted by Wema’s extremely noticeable groovy clean vocals on top of drum beats that invite some side to sides. All before a huge “EVERY DAY AND EVERY NIGHT, SO MANY BATTLES YOU HAVE TO FIGHT” chant that everyone shouts. This will be amazing to witness live. The track ends ominously with that typical hardcore feedback, leading into “Legacy Destroyed”, the heaviest track on the album which feels like a crossover between hardcore and 90s metalcore with the metallic riffs.

“Songs Of Sacrifice” is no more or less than what I expected from the London lads. Heavy aggressive hardcore performed with real captivating quality. It’s fun to sing along to and great to go apeshit to. It’s anthemic and brutal and just as good as anything Knuckledust have previously released.

7

Download: Life Struggle, Family Ties, Legacy Destroyed
For The Fans Of: Terror, Death Before Dishonor, First Blood
Listen: facebook.com

Release date 04.03.2016
Core Tex Records


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