Preview
KNUCKLEHEAD
Saturday February 12
Night Gallery
Ten band years is like 120 human years in the world of indie rock. Most groups are lucky to get through their first tour without throwing in the sweaty towel the drummer always uses.
The bands that do make it through the 10-year mark, though, are usually the ones with the passion for music. Ego can play a big part in a band’s demise – those that stick around have the smallest heads, or in the case of what has now become a Calgary street-punk staple, Knuckleheads.
And let’s not forget the other magical ingredient: beer. It’s essential in keeping things fresh. So, as the boys of Knucklehead down their pints at an Inglewood pub after rehearsal, they search for lessons learned since their ’94 inaugural year.
"Kyle (Hegel) can play when drunk," says vocalist-basssist Matt Young. "I can play when I’m drunk. Jimmy (Gamble) – we’re not sure because he doesn’t get that drunk. Eric (Jablonski) and Clay (MacNeill) cannot play when they’re drunk."
One’s ability to play while loaded may not seem like a monumental breakthrough in understanding band dynamics, but Knucklehead’s survival has depended on it from day one. "Matt actually tripped and fell off the stage at the Underground," says vocalist Hegel.
"I was loaded that night. I fell and smoked my head and got a piece of glass jammed in my elbow," says Sharp of that early gig. "So I had blood running down my arm and just laid there playing."
At first glance, the antics of the band put them in the high school dropout category, but in truth, Knucklehead’s music has produced some of the smartest, politically driven punk anthems Calgary has ever heard. Since 1994 the band has released three full-length albums and several seven-inches and EPs. Like each record before, their newest effort is their best to date. Due to drop in the coming months, The New Black List provides socio-political angst meshed with the singalong bros-and-brews anthems Knucklehead has become synonymous with.
Despite the number of brain cells the band has killed over the years, Hegel’s writing has remained fresh and current without coming off as preachy or jaded.
"The New Black List is a reference to McCarthyism in the States. It deals with neo-conservatism and things like the Patriot Act," says Hegel, describing the album’s political influences. The title track to The New Black List and "Cosmetic Youth" (available on their 2004 seven-inch of the same name) show that Knucklehead’s political side has maintained the we’re-fed-up mentality they based their music on years ago. But this isn’t classic Knucklehead, it’s comfortable-with-their-instruments Knucklehead. It’s mature.
They may deny it and laugh at being called mature, but the band has done a lot of growing up. They are big boys now and have the alcohol tolerance to prove it.
As they prepare to promote The New Black List for the next 18 months (because that’s how long Hegel says an indie record can stay fresh), the band also prepares to begin a new chapter. Rest assured, the next 10 years will be filled with as much beer and insults as the last 10. |
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