As you may have noticed, we kind of like Unwound here at The A.V. Club. So it’s a given that we’ve been eagerly anticipating the debut full-length by Survival Knife. The group, which features Unwound singer-guitarist Justin Trosper as well as that group’s fleeting founding member Brandt Sandeno (alongside bassist Meg Cunningham and drummer Kris Cunningham), has released grip of great 7-inches through Sub Pop and Kill Rock Stars over the past few months, but that was all prelude to Loose Power. The band’s debut full-length is a lean, wiry collection of prog-punk that sounds only slightly like Unwound. Granted, it’s still grim, jittery, and cryptic—but Survival Knife slices in a direction all its own.
Loose Power will be released April 29 via Glacial Pace Recordings, the label launched by Modest Mouse’s Isaac Brock (who’s often cited Unwound as a major influence, because he’d be kind of crazy not to.)