Delaware metallic hardcore band Year of the Knife announced a new album, No Love Lost, due out October 27 via Pure Noise Records. It was recorded by Kurt Ballou, ahead of the serious car accident the band got into in June, that left bassist Madi Watkins in critical condition and other members injured. Madi has since progressed in her recovery but still faces numerous challenges, including trauma to her brain. There’s a GoFundMe raising money for her and the rest of the band’s recovery, and proceeds from the album will also go to those efforts
Guitarist, bassist, and Madi’s husband Brandon Watkins writes, “After three months we’re finally gearing up to go home. We were in a terrible accident in Salt Lake City that left me concussed, Aaron with a broken femur and severed carotid artery, Andy with broken ankles, and Madi breaking almost everything and a traumatic brain injury. It’s been a long, long road but everyday brings new hope. Madi’s currently awake and alert, talking her head off, and doing constant speech, physical and occupational therapy. Like I said, it’s challenging but everyday is better. We’re looking forward to finally going home.”
“This record represents so many things for us,” he continues. “It’s Madi’s big debut, her second set of recordings and first ever LP singing for YOTK. In my opinion she CRUSHES. It was super hard to come to the decision to release the record while she’s still recovering. The record was originally supposed to start rolling out in July but with everything that happened we thought it best to wait. Now that Madi’s more aware of what’s going on I think she’ll be really excited. And we’re really excited to share this record with all of you. Our influences are all over the place for this record. This was the second time each of us wrote music for the record–like Dust to Dust where we each wrote a song, we all contributed. Madi even wrote a breakdown. It was an awesome experience learning how we each express ourselves musically. This is what I’ve got.”
Drummer Andrew Kisiewlewski adds, “At the end of June we had arguably the worst thing that can happen to a band happen to us. I sustained two dislocated and fractured ankles, had two surgeries in the span of days, spent over a month in a wheelchair, another challenging month on crutches, and now as of yesterday I’m officially walking completely unassisted. It’s crazy that all of this happened just three months ago, and that glimmer of normality already approaches us all faster than we would ever expect.”
“Given our current state, it wasn’t easy to make the decision to put out a record,” he continues. “It’s hard to say when we’ll be back in full swing, but for now we couldn’t be more excited to share this with everyone. In approaching writing, it was an unspoken consensus that our new lineup opened the door to evolve our sound even further. The overall dynamic, individual influences, and equal contribution between the four of us birthed something beyond anything we’ve done before. This record is the perfect culmination of us. It’s everything we wanna play, it’s everything we wanna hear, it’s 20 solid minutes of nothing but pure YOTK. To say I love this thing is an understatement, and I hope at least one of you finds a love for it the same way we do.”
They’ve shared two singles, “Wish,” featuring Devin Swank of Sanguisugabogg, and “Last Laugh,” featuring Dylan Walker of Full of Hell. Hear those, and see the cover art and tracklist, below.
YEAR OF THE KNIFE – NO LOVE LOST TRACKLIST
1. Sometimes
2. Wish
3. Mourning The Living
4. Alice
5. Last Laugh
6. Your Control
7. Heaven Denied
8. Return The Agony
9. No Love Lost
