Knievel - The Name Rings a Bell That Drowns Out Your Voice
(In Music We Trust)
Knievel are a 3 piece from Australia, whose straight ahead indie pop places them alongside
US mega-superstars Pedro the Lion, Death Cab for Cutie, and someone else who I can't think
of right now who you are probably listening to right now. Watch
your back Crocodile Dundee, I've found some new Australians to stir up crazy trouble and
involve themselves in wacky hijinks in our big, bustling Western cities.
Knievel's third album, The Name Rings a Bell That Drowns Out Your Voice, shows them to be
a band who have learned a lot from mid- to early-90's indie rock/pop, and have updated it
so it doesn't seem uncool, or "so 20th Century," or whatever. This is classic indie pop.
Pavement, The Lemonheads, Sebadoh, Polvo, Spinanes, Posies, and (the more current indie pop
heavyweights) Death Cab for Cutie, Pedro the Lion, The Promise Ring, and Low all seem to have
gone into the mix for this album.
The album opens with a whirring synthesizer which gives way to driving drums and melodic
guitar/bass interplay. Imagine Dave Pajo (circa Aerial M), Alan Sparhawk (circa Things We
Lost in the Fire—I guess), Randall Niemann (circa any Fuxa album), and the drummer from
the Get Up Kids all in the same band.
From the crooning ambience of "Guesswork" and the angular-to-sugary melodies in "Thoughts
in a Pattern" to the jangled bounce of "Who's On My Side," Knievel consistently deliver
really solid indie pop.
There is one problem with this album: it isn't 1993. This isn't Knievel's fault of course,
but I just know that if I had heard this album back then (or especially if I had seen them
play live), I would have fallen head over heels in love with their music, and this would
most likely be a perfect 12/12 in my mind, and would be one of my favorite albums that I
would go back to and remember when it was the mid-90's and things were so much cooler, and
I'd spend my friday nights listening to Knievel, hanging out on the local BBS, chatting
about which coffee shops were the coolest (even though I hadn't ever gone to any of them).
But that's not how it works. It's 2002, and I spend my friday nights seeing the latest
teen movie (oh man, did you see Crossroads!!), or maybe playing a rousing game of dominoes,
so indie pop just isn't what does it for me. I need something more intense
and "out there" to complement my grown up, more mature, "extreme" lifestyle.
So anyway, if you have any love for indie rock of "old" (even a guilty pleasure), you
would be wise to give Knievel a shot. They are a worthy addition to the multitude of bands
who have done this type of thing, which is an accomplishment considering they've released
this album almost a decade after a lot of the great albums in the genre. At the same time,
they also hold their own against the current indie pop fare. I think I'll go listen to The
Breeders.
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