Moose Knuckle – “Knuckle Sandwich”
When TNB was putting on our first Xmas show on at the Midway one of the bands we chose was Fast Times. They asked us if we could put Moose Knuckle on that bill- Fast Times is from Cape Cod and Moose Knuckle from Plymouth- we said fine.
Three days before such event Moose Knuckle cancelled and we were lucky to snag The Pity Whores to save the day. Moose Knuckle claimed “van problems” which is a lame excuse and I vowed to hunt them down, nail their heads to trees and pluck their eyeballs out and feed them to the birds. Either that or force them to watch one of my puppet shows.
But then I found Jesus. He was in the back of my closet underneath some soiled underwear. And then I saw them open up for The Pity Whores and I was truly, spiritually enlightened.
It was a show at a club and it got shut down because they were surprised that people were moshing at a punk show (LOL). And it was there that I saw that Moose Knuckle is a band of multi-colored Mohawked-men fully focused on laying down some mighty awesome Oi/Punk/Hardcore that is fun, exciting and in your face and all thoughts of eye removal went away with a blink of the eye.
Beside sounding great this must be the best packaged CD I’ve reviewed. It’s called “Knuckle Sandwich” and does have a picture of a fist of knuckles inside a sandwich, but the CD itself is in a little paper lunch bag that sprouts above the CD when you open it up. I hope this whets your appetite for what’s to follow, let’s take a few bites.
“Pogo” is poorly recorded, the rhythm is rushed, and the lyrics are hard to decipher. And this song, of course, is one of the best I’ve heard all year. A grinding guitar, a slashing drum that erupts into a drum roll while all the other instruments wrestle violently with each other. A guttural, foaming at the mouth vocal vomits on top of this along with a recurring response chorus of “pogo pogo” reminding me of my hometown of Pango Pango in the Phillipines. A melodic guitar line descends down upon the madness but can’t sway this full force onslaught of Oi/punk/crust shoved down your throat, mind and ears as it relentlessly burns a scorching tattoo into your heart.
[audio:https://www.thrashnbang.com/wp-content/music/01-PoGo.mp3|titles=PoGo]
A garage riff pushed to overdrive starts “Breach The Streets” with only a pause to grunt and then we’re into a rush of take no prisoners hardcore with the lead vocals ripping through your bloodstream along with some response vocals along for the ride. A bit of a breakdown follows until the inflammable guitar ignites fires that start in the center of our brains like a brush fire that then spreads and all that’s left is the ashes of our remains.
[audio:https://www.thrashnbang.com/wp-content/music/05-Breach the Streets.mp3|titles=Breach the Streets]
“Nova Pain” starts with a chuggin’ guitar and some assurance that all has returned to normalcy- then a little pause, a bass lick and a guitar screech informs us that mayhem and madness is but one beat beyond. Soon the vocals are screaming spittle into the speakers while the guitars grind out a lick and valiantly tries to keep pace with the manic drums. A breakdown with some spoken/found vocals follows and then were drawn back into the cyclone of this sound that destroys every molecule in its way.
[audio:https://www.thrashnbang.com/wp-content/music/02-Novapain.mp3|titles=Novapain]
Moose Knuckle is a band that cannot be trusted, trust me on this. They want to take your children and turn them into porcupines. They want them to learn a hostile attitude toward authority. They want them to do actions and not think of the consequences, especially if its just pure wholesome fun. They are anti-society creatures that are set out to destroy our most beloved, cherished dreams of conformity, complacency and constipation.
This is music that makes ordinary music like indie and pop run screaming home for mommy. This makes pretty damn good music like pop/punk and heavy hardcore- switch to the other side of the street to avoid.
This is Oi and traditional punk to the max, hardcore that feels no need to fit in with its restrictions- this is pure punk with no boundaries or limits to abide with.
This is music that doesn’t care what you think about it. I do, I really hope you like it. But this music is uncompromising, full of battered and bruised limbs from the mosh-pit, hearts and lives squandered, and doesn’t care. Your dismissal would only be its highest reward.
This is intense, passionate real music.
And this is music that makes one move to the other side of the street.
I suggest you hit it straight- head on.
(Slimedog)
