Knower – Knower Forever

Forgoing the usual structure of a review allow me to skip right to the finale.  If I had been paying attention/knew about this album when it was released in June of 2023 Knower Forever would have unquestionably been my album of the year.  Instead I have to thank my lucky stars that some guiding force of the cosmos decided it would do me good to investigate Knower.  Thank you unnamed guiding force!  I owe you one!

 

Alright, now that I’ve hopefully made it clear that I am unabashedly enthusiastic about this group and their latest album let me explain why I find this recent musical connection so impactful.  First of all, based off of my recent listening habits this music was a gale force wind of fresh sounds and ideas.  These songs check off so many boxes it is ridiculous.  What type of music do you want to listen to waveriders?  Pop?  All of this album can be classified as pop.  Funk?  Knower often gets downright filthy.  Electronic?  Synthesizers feature in every song.  Jazz?  There are multiple solos that would fit right into your favorite bebop record.  Metal?  Well, maybe not, but the song “Do Hot Girls Like Chords” comes awfully close from time to time.

 

But what if you’re more of a visual person when sampling new music?  Knower has you covered there as well!  I watched all seven of the impressively D.I.Y. music videos corresponding to this album every day for fifteen straight days.  I love watching all of the musical elements being performed/recorded inside (and outside of) a suburban home.  I love seeing the enthusiasm of the musicians tasked to breathe life into these compositions.  I love all of the snarky text/low resolution imagery flashing on screen which complements the snarky lyrics of some of the songs.  I love this stuff!

 

There is one note I do want to make.  Knower is the project of Louis Cole and Genevieve Artadi.  Due to my enthusiasm towards Knower Forever I bought the entire Knower discography on Bandcamp.  While I do enjoy the music which preceded Knower Forever, my personal sweet spot with this group involves the “live band” lineup(s).  That said, I highly recommend you investigate everything on offer.  It’s all worthwhile and you may prefer the more electronic nature of the earlier albums.

 

So there you have it waveriders.  Knower is one of my favorite musical discoveries in recent memory, and Knower Forever has irrevocably cemented itself into my listening life!  Check ‘em out!

 

-Penfold