Knife Bride - ‘don’t dream too much’ review
Knife Bride by Sam Rockman
One week removed from Brighton-Slut-Metal-Mob Knife’s Bride’s latest effort, don't dream too much, here's our impression of the EP.
don’t dream too much EP cover
Leading up to its release, there were promises of “A trilogy of my gruesome dreams. A one night cycle of disturbing visions'' from vocalist Mollie Buckley. The result is what we would consider a maturing release for a band that is yet to feature on the scene for a full two years.
Knife Bride supported Wargasm in opening the Explicit tour late last year. To elaborate, their setlist then featured the song ‘Masochist’, which would later rework into the opening track of this EP ‘sacrifice/surrender’, as well as an early performance of ‘permanent s m i l e’. The degree to which these songs have improved in the year since is very impressive.
Those familiar with Knife Bride's live show may know the opening track - the guitar-heavy banger ‘Masochist’. The rebranded ‘sacrifice/surrender’ is that same banger and then some, but now has a very ethereal, ghostly feel with some minor lyrical changes, as well as a nice emphasis on synths that may have been missable live.
This all takes a harsh left turn after Buckley’s lyric “I think I’m gonna be sick”. The breakdown in this song is an example of Knife Bride outdoing themselves after the run of other singles we saw from them last year in a delightful prog-tinged nightmare - the start of Buckley’s “trilogy of [...] gruesome dreams” we mentioned earlier.
Second track of the EP, ‘smother (make me suffer)’ is a definite shot of the “fuck you” energy Knife Bride exudes. Lyrically, the track does present something subservient, but is a kick between the legs to the whole concept, saying to the ‘master’ in this scenario “I think you’ve had about enough”. Some elements of this track are reminiscent of The Paradigm Shift-era Korn but the synths and guitar (from Lauren Wise & Sean Windle respectively) beef up the tune, beating that influence over the head with a much-needed update for the scene. The lyric “I’ll be on my worst behaviour” would be an excellent calling card for the band beyond how it features in this song.
The final track, ‘permanent s m i l e’, seems to be embodying the message of Knife Bride best - this is them at their most unfiltered. I’ve resisted relying too much on what other songs sound like something from other artists, but this track is Knife Bride through and through. There’s little else you can liken it to. Across the EP, this features Buckley’s best vocal performance, as well as having the best instrumental the band has on offer. From the moment Sean Milsopp hits his first drum, you have a tight track that ends the EP with a bang.
Overall, don’t dream too much stamps Knife Bride’s name down as part of a very intriguing new wave of talent on the UK scene. The band is a result of a diverse range of tastes in music, and it comes across in the content of the EP. It seems to carry two different styles the band does well, with a very In this Moment-esque first track, mention of Korn in the second, then converging in the final.
As a callback, I mentioned this was a maturing effort for the five-piece. The main aspect of that is these songs were already in use at live shows, hidden in plain sight. The work at The Ranch with Neil Kennedy and Lewis Johns on this EP applied some polish to already excellent tracks the band needs praising for.
Knife Bride’s don’t dream too much EP is out now, self-released on 25 August. Catch them live in September at Burn It Down Festival and Misery Loves Company.