Four years have passed since Young Knives’ last studio outing – 2020’s aggressive and philosophical look at humanity’s propensity for hyper-violence, Barbarians – and during this time the band have taken a step to consider the changing of the world around them, their place in it, and the sometimes-futile pursuit of controlling what it is that we leave behind when we’re gone.
Music fans will pick-up on the tongue-in-cheek use of the word "landfill" as an album title from a band that emerged during the post-indie-rock-revival of the 00s. But rather than dwelling on the derogatory landfill stick that has sometimes comes to beat them, Young Knives instead use this coming phase of their career to contemplate the nature of existence and how best to catalogue it through song. As lead singer and guitarist Henry Dartnall puts it, “it’s a record is about letting things go before they are taken from you, including the carefully curated images of ourselves. Embracing everything the world throws at you and not taking it to heart.”
Fans of Young Knives may be forgiven for thinking that Landfill may be about to enter nihilistic territory, and with the band being evicted from their long-time home and studio during the recording process it is true to say that the album is imbued with a fear of the unknown, as adrenaline stokes the fires of vitriol. However, the record is far more concerned with retaining a philosophical outlook on how we view the passing of time, best exemplified by lead single ‘Dissolution’, which is partly inspired by the Hitchiker’s Guide To The Galaxy quote “Time is an illusion. Lunchtime doubly so.” Dartnall expands: “I love ideas like this. What an amazing way to present such a deep idea but also make it fun. I just wanted to experiment with doing our version of that. You can’t force ideas on people, you can just suggest them and leave them hanging in a way that people might one day consider if they feel like it.”
Released: January 2025
Cat: GADZOOK110LP
Label: Gadzook
Listen
Tracklist
1. A Memory of Venom
2. Ugly House
3. Cause & Effect
4. People from The Second Way
5. Dissolution
6. No Sound
7. Your Car has Arrived
8. Completely Gone
9. Love the Knives
10. Fresh Meat