Young Knives | Photo credit Photo by Ian Wallman
“A bug-eyed nightmare song cycle… Remarkable in very many ways.”
MOJO ****
‘Freedom with a big F
Freedom with a little left’
Young Knives (brothers Henry Dartnall and The House of Lords) are today releasing “Swarm”, the opening track from their forthcoming album Barbarians. Henry says:
‘Swarm is about feeling at one with all humans, and how that is both beautiful and disgusting at the same time; everyone pulling together, but also having to exist with everyone else’s germs and diseases. It’s also a question about freedom. If we are one then what does freedom really mean? Are you free if your every action impacts the whole? Does it matter if you aren’t?’
Listen to the edit of “Swarm” HERE. The full version appears on upcoming album Barbarians, due for release on Sept 18.
Listen to “Swarm” on streaming services HERE.
During lockdown, the brothers have been hosting weekly livestreams from Henry’s house; social distancing observed with The House of Lords based in the now-famous caravan on the driveway, and Henry’s 11-year-old son Arthur on tech duties. The shows are viewable live via Facebook, YouTube and Twitter on Saturday nights at 8pm, and all of the Caravan Lockdown Livestreams so far can be enjoyed via the band’s website:
www.young-knives.com/live-streams
Barbarians will be the band’s first album in seven years, following the highly acclaimed 2013 album Sick Octave. Set for release on 18th September 2020, Barbarians was written, recorded and mixed by Young Knives in their studio near Oxford, UK. John Gray’s book Straw Dogs inspired the brothers to dial into the ultra-violent, brutal nature of human beings. Our progresses in science and knowledge have not made any of us any less barbaric: our entertainment is obsessed with it, our world is full of it. What if cruelty to others is just part of who we are? How do we live with that? Barbarians is a leap into sonic experimentation by a band who love to confuse and entertain in equal measure.
Barbarians is available on vinyl, CD, cassette and digital, with various tantalising limited-edition options including a box set, alternative sleeve illustrated by artist Bevis Martin, pink splatter vinyl, screen prints, and ‘Freedom with a Big F’ manifesto / lyric book. The Barbarians shop is here.
Young Knives – Barbarians – Track listing
1. Swarm
2. Society for Cutting Up Men
3. Jenny Haniver
4. Red Cherries
5. I Am Awake
6. Holy Name ‘68
7. Barbarians
8. Sheep Tick
9. Only a God
10. What I Saw
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