A debut album has been a long time coming for Southern California’s Knumears. Having formed in 2021, the band have several split releases and EP’s under their belt already, showing the development of their dark take on the Screamo/Skramz sound pioneered by bands such as Saetia, Pageninetynine, You and I, and Orchid throughout the 90’s. Now, almost a decade into their time as a band, Knumears have teamed up with the producer behind Deafheaven’s genre defining Sunbather album Jack Shirley to craft their debut album Directions – a release which is sure to put them on the map to the unconverted.
Directions is a screamo album in every sense of the word – it’s another band trying to leave their mark on a sound that has existed for around three decades. However, this is also an incredibly confident release which is bound to make listeners sit up and take notice of Knumears. The guitars are intense but also keep a layer of melody underneath the brooding chaos exuding from their core. The minor key melodic chords drip with distortion whilst also having a somewhat dark and sinister quality to them. This melody does sometimes take a backseat to more full force aggression, occasionally bringing to mind the emo crust of Fall of Efrafa.
Guiding the guitars throughout this album’s duration is the drums of drummer Frankie Lopez. From start to finish, Lopez’s drums define the atmosphere and mood of each section. Whilst usually accentuating the frenzy brought about by the other instruments, Lopez also knows when to dial things back in order to let the more atmospheric moments stand out a little more. On top of this, the drumming can add a lot of weight to the melodic chords to make them hit that much harder. Early highlight ‘My Name’ perfectly showcases this with the drums successfully providing the beating pulse throughout the shifting soundscapes.
Much like all great bands within Screamo, Knumears beating heart and soul comes from the vocals. Matthew Cole provides the emotional core of the album with a passionate and cathartic scream that never lets up once. Whilst the vocals tend to stick to the tried and tested ‘scream your heart out for half an hour with not a lot of variation’ formula, what matters more most is the emotional intent behind the performance which feels as genuine as some of the best frontmen and women that the genre has birthed over the years. We’re also treated to some guest vocals from Jereme’s Dream frontman Jeff Smith on lead single ‘Fade Away’, showcasing a symbolic passing of the torch akin to Thursday Geoff Ricky’s guest appearance on early Touche Amore gem ‘History Reshits Itself’.
All the years that Knumears have spent honing their craft have clearly paid off, and Directions is the end result of that. Whilst it isn’t a genre redefining album, it doesn’t need to be. Instead, Knumears offer their most confident display yet and prove to the scene that they’re a band to be watched intently.