DETAILS

Knucklehead CD Release Party
The Distillery
Friday, November 5 - Friday, November 5

More in: Rock / Pop

After more than 10 years on the Calgary scene, you don’t expect any surprises from a stalwart punk act like Knucklehead — until it manages to pull it off. Its latest full-length, Hearts on Fire, has everything you’ve come to know and love from a group whose foot-stomping, fist-pumping anthems impress both all-ages crowds and old-time crusty punks. It’s also got a little more.

Calling a band like Knucklehead “comfortable” might sound bad, but in the case of Hearts on Fire, it’s a compliment. The album doesn’t feel like it was knocked out in a weekend, like so many other local punk albums. Instead, it has the confidence and energy that only being together for a decade brings. The songs are tight, the performances are intense, with the results being relentlessly catchy and just as tough as it has to be. Most albums from the 21st century can’t hold their own against pioneers like The Ramones and The Sex Pistols, but Hearts on Fire can. Add a dose of your favourite Social Distortion song and you’re there; Hearts on Fire is the sound of a band hitting its stride. Just try to keep up — it’s worth it.

What was Knucklehead hoping to achieve when it started work on Hearts on Fire?

James Gamble (guitarist): We’re getting up in years and the three original guys in the band have kids and professional careers so our releases are getting further and far between. With this record we set out to make a record that we were 100 per cent satisfied with. We took a lot of time to write the songs and get them to the point where we thought they couldn’t be any better. For the first time, we took enough time in the studio to make things sound how we wanted them to sound. In the past, we would have four days in the studio to make a full-length record — that’s to mix it and everything. We would just bang it out and whatever it is in the end, it is. We remixed this record a bunch of times and we finally got the chance to take the care we felt we needed to make a really, really outstanding record.

Hearts on Fire was the last album to be recorded with local producer Dave Alcock at Calgary’s Sundae Sound. How did you feel about that?

We specifically went to Dave so that he could make us sound like us, and then to have Dave close the doors right after, we were really surprised and kind of bummed out that we won’t be able to do that again with him because Sundae Sound shut down earlier this year. He found ways to get the best out of us without being pushy. By being positive and encouraging, he got the best performance out of us.

When you play old-school punk rock, what’s the secret to not letting it get old?

If you enjoy it, it will never get old to you. I don’t think you have to worry about it. It’s very fun and exciting — I feel it’s a very inclusive form of music. You don’t have to be the coolest kid in school to buy punk rock records and come to punk rock shows. In fact, it’s probably more appealing if you are not those things. I always think punk rock is for weirdoes and freaks and different kids.

What is a typical Knucklehead show like?

It’s very rowdy. There’s a lot of beer consumed. There are a lot of singalongs and a lot of high fives and a lot of people having a good time.

Hearts on Fire’s CD release show is on Friday, November 5 at the Distillery.