Bloody Knees – Stitches EP
Dogs Knight Productions is one of [sic] magazine’s favourite new labels. Their record of turning up lesser-known pop-punk gems speaks for itself. There’s real care in each of their colourful 12”s, the accompanying merch is top drawer and their recent hook-ups with bands from another of [sic]’s favourite labels, Art Is Hard, is just further endearing them to us.
The latest band to release on both is Cambridge four-piece Bloody Knees. Stitches is their second EP and, simply, it rules. Their contribution on a split 7” with the like-minded Birdskulls earlier this year was a bit iffy, sounding like a budget Foo Fighters, but the marauding garage-punk they distil on tracks like “Luckless” is much more likeable now. Frontman Bradley Griffiths’ serrated vocal still lends proceedings an emo-grunge edge however, the standout “Never Change” starting like a crunchy cover of Nirvana’s “You Know You’re Right” before descending into a tail-end wail-fest.
It’s so easy to get this sort of thing wrong too. All too often you end up with some fledgling, small-town drivel, but Bloody Knees’ power chords and melodies are just resilient, just too much fun to write off. The fuzzy “Daydream”, for example, mixes summery skate snot with the choicest of lo-fi vinegars to great effect, helping to make Stitches another great addition to the burgeoning Dogs Knight Productions roster and to the UK underground as a whole.
Best track: “Never Change”
~The Stitches EP is out now on Dogs Knight Productions.~