Survival Knife - Divine Mob / Snakebit (Album Review)

 

Survival Knife - Divine Mob / Snakebit

(2013)


My copy: 2013 45RPM 7” on gold vinyl by Kill Rock Stars.


Survival Knife is the first of Justin Trosper’s two modern projects following the disbandment of his primary band Unwound back in 2001. Brandt Sandeno played in early iterations of Unwound and rejoins Trosper in Survival Knife alongside Meg and Kris Cunningham. This 7” preceded Survival Knife’s full-length debut, and features the exclusive track “Snakebit.”

“Divine Mob” benefits from tight mixing, using stereo panning to draw attention to harmonic interplay between the two guitars. “Divine Mob” is unfortunately the less inspired of the two tracks, with tones and progressions that seem to worship the glam-metal of the 80s. Trosper’s iconic yelp returns, but he’s reduced to singing along to triumphant chords near the end of the song. “Snakebit” is no doubt the star, with powerful chugging dirty guitar that draws more from hardcore. Cunningham’s vocals harken to the nervous vibrato of Jello Biafra which fits the darker, more aggressive demeanor. 

These are not like the songs Trosper made with Unwound, rather they are sounds of an artist attempting to move on from the atonal and harsh stylings of his past; the music has matured slightly, but at the cost of most of its originality.


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