"You Won’t Go Before You’re Supposed To" Album Review
On May 10th, 2024- Knocked Loose has just unleashed a brand new, jaw dropping album titled “You Won’t Go Before You’re Supposed To” via Pure Noise Records. Knocked Loose is a hardcore band formed in 2013 based in Oldham County, Kentucky. This band is accompanied by Bryan Garris on vocals, Issac Hale and Nicko Calderon on guitars, Kevin Otten on bass, and lastly Kevin “Pacsun” Kaine on drums.
To kick off this album, the first song on the tracklist is “Thirst”, which makes you feel that you are in an abandoned room or in a church hearing chimes echoing. Garris then roars fans and new listeners with his insane, powerful vocals. With blistering guitar work and thunderous drumming, this song begins with a brutal energy that sets the pace for the rest of the song. Frontman Bryan Garris's vocals are delivered with visceral power, alternating between guttural screams and seething growls. It kind of seems like I’m just getting yelled at.
Tracks featured on the album include “Don’t Reach For Me”, “Piece by Piece”, “Moss Covers All”, “Take Me Home”, “The Calm That Keeps You Awake” and many more. Hard crushing, catchy riffs, blast beat drums and killer vocals can be seen on all of these tracks.
Some of my favorite tracks from this album have to be “Suffocate”, “Blinding Faith”, and lastly you cannot forget about “Slaughterhouse 2”. The vocal cameo features this album has definitely put me in shock, but at the same time, it has not. This album features Chris Motionless of Motionless in White and Poppy. “Suffocate” featuring Poppy is very groovy with its rhythm, especially within the drums. With this track's high tempo and speed, there would be no doubt a mosh pit if this song was performed live, due to its relentless energy. With Poppy's ferocious screams in the second verse, the song gains an intriguing dynamic. I was unsure at one point as to whose voice was screaming when her vocals complemented Garris's perfectly. I have caught this song live at Sick New World this past April and I got absolutely demolished in that mosh pit but it was so incredible seeing Poppy gaining more exposure in the scene and Knocked Loose branching out and going out of their comfort zone for such an insane track.
Slaughterhouse 2 has to be one of my favorites in comparison to the first Slaughterhouse that was produced in Motionless in White’s ‘Scoring The End Of The World’ that came out in spring of 2022. On Thursday May 9th, 2024 fans were able to hear the debut premiere of this track on SiriusXM Liquid Metal if they were subscribed to SiriusXM. Luckily I was one of those who got to hear it first before it got released to the public. At the start of this track, Ceruli starts off by saying “Break down the wall again”, unlike Garris kicking off the song in the first Slaughterhouse. Knocked Loose's aggressive sound is further enhanced by Chris Motionless' guest appearance, which complements his distinctive vocal style perfectly. This track is enhanced by the haunting melodies and powerful screams of his vocals, which add depth and dynamics to it. One thing that caught my attention was the backing tracks and how you were able to hear the metronome clicking in the background. My jaw dropped especially when Ceruli hit us with the “BLEGH” at the very end of the song. I honestly wish I waited to hear the song when it came out because part of me wanted to get out of my car and just start throwing elbows at the air.
The first release of this track that fans heard was the one and only “Blinding Faith” which was teased and delivered to us in February of this year. The song kicks off with a barrage of insane chugging in the guitars and thunderous drumming. Make sure to tie your shoes guys as you are about to want to two-step once you hear this track. In this track, Hale, Calderon and Garris all share the spotlight as they deliver screams. Once the breakdown hits, Hale, Calderon and Garris do the pre-breakdown call out “bend the knee”.. “son of God” and of course Garris had to hit us with a “BREEEEEEEE” then all hell went to earth. Back when I went to Sick New World, I caught a friend of mine two-stepping as a circle pit was happening around them during this song and of course you know I had to participate in that. As a 5’3 short person, I absolutely got lost in the pit with all the tall people surrounding me.
To conclude the album, the last track off the album is titled “Sit & Mourn”, a gut-wrenching track that delves into themes of loss, regret, and severe emotion. From its haunting intro to its cathartic conclusion, the song takes listeners on a journey through the depths of suffering and delves into the feelings of those who may be struggling. An atmospheric guitar melody sets the mood, setting a melancholic tone and immediately drawing the listener in. The instrumentation of the song intensifies with thunderous drums and driving bass adding layers of emotion and depth. In all honesty, this song kind of made me tear up with the emotion behind the lyrics and how haunting the instrumentals were throughout the track. As the lyrics explore the aftermath of loss and the struggle to accept the past, they paint a vivid picture of heartache and longing. The lyric “Will you inherit my grief, if I finally choose to sleep?” was what stood out to me the most; ties into the album title ‘You Won’t Go Before You’re Supposed To’ where death will not take place and you have to learn from your past and not put yourself in a situation where you should not have to end yourself.
Overall, this has to be one of the best released albums of 2024 as of now and I am stoked to hear more from Knocked Loose in the future. They are currently going on their headlining tour across North America with Show Me The Body, Loathe, and Speed. Catch them while you can so you can hear more from the new album live.
