Oldham County, KY, hardcore band Knocked Loose released Laugh Tracks on Friday. The album was produced and engineered by Will Putney and is their Pure Noise Records label debut. The album begins with Oblivious Peak that straight away sets the scene for the whole album with a metal instrumental feel to it. It takes around 40 seconds before the ferocious vocals kick in that remind you of an early Oli Sykes. Bryan Garris screams these lyrics with a lot of emotion as guitarists Isaac Hale and Cole Crutchfield really compliments the heavy lyrics. Once the song breaks down, it almost sounds something what A Day To Remember would perform when they first started but it soon changes with some epic heavy vocals. Next up is Deadringer and it begins where the first ended with some killer riffs and some epic drumming skills by Pac Sun. The five piece really enters their element here despite Garris still screaming throughout, it’s perhaps a little less heavy than the first with it ending on a rather old and classic song. The Rain quickly follows however and certainly reinstates it’s heaviness once again. Bass player Kevin Otten shows off some killer beats on this one, that really works well with Garris’ angry voice. Next up was Blood Will Have Blood and again you can really hear some influences from early Bring Me The Horizon, however there’s a few less screaming vocals on this one, that may appeal to a more wider audience. Counting Worms started off differently to the songs with a constant beat in the background for the opening 20 seconds before it really kicked in with plenty of breakdowns. Despite this the song is little over one minute long yet a solid contribution to the album.
My Heroes starts with Garris’ screaming vocals once again which is a current theme throughout this album, however I’m sure fans are not complaining. This is another short song with it being under three minutes and the next one is even shorter. Billy No Mates is only over 2 minutes long however in this drummer Pac Sun provides a real treat for the listener. He provides an awesome beat to the whole song that compliments Garris’ angry voice that really makes the song. Last Words also falls under the two minute bracket however it provides just as much as heaviness than the rest of the album. Guitarists Isaac Hale and Cole Crutchfield both create incredible riffs for this song that which is another common theme throughout the whole album. Next up is No Thanks and this takes around 15 seconds before the vocals kick in with some furious guitar riffs and some hardcore drumming leading up to it. Another short song however it really packs so much in with it being just over two minutes long. The penultimate song A Fetish starts off with some killer drumming and takes 30 seconds before you hear any lyrics at all. It’s worth the wait however with Garris just screaming all every single word. The last song which is the title song Laugh Tracks is in the fact the longest track of the album. It continues the theme of killer riffs and angry vocals that I would recommend anyone to listen. However the chorus to this has more spoken vocals which really gives the listener more impact of emotion. Despite it being the longest, the song ends with loads of laughter for the last thirty seconds, which is a little creepy but works so well.
Rating 8/10
Plenty of potential, Garris’ vocals provides a superb match for the album and he gets across his lyrics emotionally.
Album highlight: Laugh Tracks, has potential to be a real hit for all hardcore music fans out there!