The Knife: Shaking the Habitual

Sister and brother Karin and Olof Dreijer have an unusual perspective on the world and pop music, as became clear on their breakthrough album Silent Shout and the Charles Darwin “electro-opera” Tomorrow, In A Year, three years ago. On Shaking the Habitual, they have extended their pattern of erupting principles in an extreme manner.

CD | The Knife ●●●
Shaking the Habitual electro (Cooperative Music/V2)

To be creatively successful, anything firmly rooted or established has to be shaken up. This has resulted in their most eclectic and hybrid project to date, in which organic and electronic sounds are seamlessly interwoven; a political pamphlet anchored by intriguing noise-experiments and krautrock, sporadically elevated by the often twisted and androgynous vocals from the singer/lead gangster. Immerse yourself in the nervous rhythm patterns of “Networking”, be swept away slowly by the robust techno pop of “Full Of Fire” and the numerous ingenious twists that liberate you from the norm. This artistic eclecticism, including the explicit positions adopted concerning gender roles and ecology, is not unlike what Antony and CocoRosie do, but The Knife’s beats are more physical, and more efficient. Shaking the Habitual is anti-establishment, but precisely in favour of a life lived consciously.

5/5, 20.00, SOLD OUT!, Ancienne Belgique