I talked to Bloody Knives leader Preston Maddox back in December for Big Takeover. I found him to be an articulate and funny guy as he expounded on the current music scene he is part of. This new vinyl only EP veers away from the somewhat more ethereal work they’ve done in the past, and clearly marks the band’s punk and metal influences. Witness the opening track, “Nothing Can Save You Now”, with its hard-edged sonic attack underscoring Preston’s almost gentle vocals. That is followed by “Not Alone”, which has a killer bass riff propelling it along. Keyboards lift the song out of the gloom, but only for an instant before it dives back into the sonic maelstrom.
The EP’s title, along with morbid song titles like “Waiting For You To Die”, “Kill You All”, and “Bullet In Your Head” hint at the darkness inherent in BK’s mesmerizing sonic asasults. The songs are only snippets, fading away before you’ve had time to digest them. But “Bullet In Your Head” sticks, with guitar work that Tony Iommi would be proud to call his own. I could be way off, but it sure reminds me of classic Black Sabbath, going way back to Paranoid days.
All that aside, my only complaint is that Death is too damned short, and it’s finished in an instant. Good work, Bloody Knives. I want more.
