Before the first lyric even touches the track, KNARD uses raw, speaker-straining abrasion in Autonomy to gut the gloss from modern alt electronica. There’s no warning, no easing in, just a full-throttle sonic incursion that could have fallen from the back catalogue of early Prodigy. Then, like a ghost punching through static, the vocal melody swoops in with evocative precision, sweeping the mechanical chaos into something surprisingly affecting.
With the same melodic draw as acts like Zeromancer and Celldweller, KNARD distils the angst of our overstimulated digital minds into something far more lucid. Then, just when you think the dust has settled, a barrage of chugged nu-metal licks slams through the mix with all the force of a head-on collision. The unexpected Infected Mushroom-esque arrangement twists reality again, especially when the turntables screech in and nod unflinchingly towards Slipknot’s sonic carnage.
It’s a release from an artist who clearly isn’t interested in playing the commercial game. Since ditching formulaic electronica and aligning more with the raw expressions often found in activism and underground scenes, KNARD, known offstage as Damien Aleister McCoy, has used music to excavate mental wreckage and mould it into catharsis. With a performance history that includes MAGFest, Big Dub, and Dreamscape Festival, KNARD has been building a rep for unleashing this kind of visceral aural riot to crowds who want their walls rattled and minds realigned.
Autonomy is now available on all major streaming platforms, including Spotify.
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Amelia Vandergast – A&R Factory
