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Hi Sorry State friends! Hope you are all doing well! We’ve been busy little technical bees at SSR headquarters with our transition to a whole new system and way of business life. I think the dust has settled and we’re in a good place. I’m sparing you the details, but I just want to say major hats off to Daniel for getting us here.
Now, in honor of our return to normalcy, I present to you my staff pick. I’ve been excited to write about this record since it first arrived, but we weren’t quite ready to launch yet. It’s the new Sorry State Records release by the Cleveland band, Knowso. Knowso has members of Perverts Again and Cloud Nothings. Although the band isn’t new, the record is. It’s called Pulsating Gore, and I loved it upon very first listen. And that’s partially because it’s one of those records that will evoke a strong opinion, good or bad, pretty much immediately. This one isn’t a grower. Being from northeast Ohio, I am always psyched to hear any new punk or punk-adjacent records out of Cleveland. You never know what you’re gonna get from a Cleveland band, but usually it has some vein of weirdness running through it. And I say that in the most endearing way possible. Knowso is weird, but it’s not too weird, but it’s weird enough to make it really difficult to draw comparisons. I guess you could file it under Devo-core, but I don’t even think that’s a great fit.
The best I can come up with is demented post-punk, although it feels like it transcends post-punk. It’s quirky, catchy, and creative, with lyrics that are sarcastic, funny, clever, and even intellectual at times. I love that shit. I love when you’re listening to music and something they say makes you stop and think. Or laugh. They have some really funny lines that make me wonder what the hell they were thinking when they wrote them. The lyrics on the closing track (Where Do You Fit?) is one of those songs. They say “where do you fit in the grid? What if I told you that the universe is knit? Where do you fit if the grid is a quilt? They only like the square! I wish they liked the circle but they only like the square!,” lamenting over and over that “they only like the square!”
The songs are bass driven with tight and simple repetitive drum beats, and steady and focused vocals that command your attention. The vocals are done in a spoken word style often assisted by other interesting voices and echoes to add dimension. Although I do think the dry delivery is symbolic of the dread and robotic repetition of life, as described in their songs. You can almost picture a cult with lifeless eyes chanting some of these lyrics in unison. It’s as if they are creating a picture of what they’re saying by how they’re saying it. Maybe I’m giving them too much credit by suggesting that they are taking us on some sort of philosophical journey, but it’s fun to read into things. It’s fun to come across music that makes you stop and think and zone out for a bit.
Anyway, the weird systematic vocals are accompanied by very sharp angular beats that are unexpectedly catchy. The tempo shifts are sudden and unpredictable. Even though you don’t see them coming, they happen at the perfect times. It’s as if they know exactly at what points you are questioning whether this is too weird for you, and they make sure to do something interesting to knock that question out of your head. The perfect example of this is on my favorite track, Do the Work. This song is so good. It starts out rather unassuming, and then the chorus hits and just becomes the best sound on the record. Heavy Hauler and Drink from the Lake are also standout tracks. They embody that catchy and culty sound in the best way.
The music is very tight and honed in and purpose-driven. And fun! Knowso is really refreshing. I can’t think of anyone who reminds me of this band. It is kind of an unusual release for Sorry State, but I think it’s so cool that we put out this record. Give it a shot! Thanks so much for reading! Until next time.
-Angela