Under the hard-wearing privilege of being an independent music powerhouse, The Knitts have always separated themselves from the suffocating grips of major record labels. Their sonic-chops and super-charge melodies have been festooning their fans' minds since their inception in 2016 and their following tours across the country, where they floated between festivals like BottleRock, Desert Daze, and Treefort Music Fest over the next few years. With brothers Justin and Charlie Volkens covering vocals, and guitar, their long time companions Jimmy Jazz (bass), Sandra Alva (drums), and Victor Portillo (lead guitar), rule over the measure of their newest singles, "Dimensions," as it marks the opening of their EP garnishing the same title, with a prismatic Video-feature attached.
As Charlie Volkens effortlessly swipes across the strings of his guitar, establishing the Garage-rock textures of this piece with his dusty tone, his brother Justin takes grips over the microphone with a buzzing incantation that draws from the introspections of his lousy luck. The video accompaniment features kaleidoscopic renderings of the Band perform their song with an intoxicating enthusiastic spirit amongst tight walls of the small room they're performing in.
It doesn't take long before another scintillating guitar garnishes the indie mix's edges, and Sandra Alva lays down a tottering groove over her Industrial sounding drumkit. It marks the foreshadowing of Sonic eruptions that are about to consume us. Meanwhile, Jimmy Jazz subtly finds his place within the meandering garage-rock sound pressure, and as Justin's multi-tracked voices quaver in unison over the hooking Chorus, The Knitts plunge us into those eager spaces on the venue floor, reserved for head-banging and bouncing off our toes. Minus the "Ooohs" and "Aaahs," The Knitts bring forth a refreshing "wall of sound," aesthetic to their Indie Rock character, and it's infatuating, to say the least.
As "Dimensions" develops over the smashing dynamics of Alvis' sticks thundering over the cymbals, and the unity behind the hot-blooded electrics that synergize together for the tracks' booming chorus, it's hard not to find ourselves absorbed in the bombproof vibrations they exude. Like a hardened exoskeleton, this Band has grown into their independent-Garage-rock carapaces, and we're itching to witness more.
We would like to start off by asking, what were some of the emotions each of you had to channel into for the performances you recorded on "Dimensions'" music video?
We had one day to get the video done, so each of us had to come in focused and with a clear vision of what we needed for the video. But it’s always super exciting to be making a music video and each member knew going into this one to bring the energy of our live performances into the “Dimensions” music video.
Was this a song based on personal life experiences, or was this a combination of a collective of ideas from each band member?
The lyrics are real feelings drawn from a real place, definitely! Some lyrics, like these, are written just vague enough so that the listener can attach their own narrative to them. It’s a therapy for us to write the song together so we hope it can be therapy for someone listening to the song!
Can you tell us about some of the learning experiences you've encountered as a band during the recording of this single's Music Video?
How to adapt, maybe? But if we’re good at anything, it’s definitely been the ability to adapt to unforeseen circumstances. Filming a music video during a pandemic had its limitations and concerns but we put our collective minds together and came up with a video and a process that worked best for each of us!
How do you think "Dimensions" fits into the cohesive nature of the rest of your EP and is there a reason this single mirrors the name of the Extended Play?
We thought the song “Dimensions” was a track that showcased where we’ve been and where we are going. There might be songs that are more suitable for that diction, definitely. But coupled with it feeling like a good (re)introduction to The Knitts, we went with it as the overarching theme for this block of songs.
What has been keeping you all inspired in 2020?
Two things probably. Each other definitely, but also the challenge of 2020 itself! We’re all best friends at the end of the day and we’re always communicating, so naturally, The Knitts is a popular topic! We can’t help but motivate one another. 2020 however, is more motivation than inspiration. We had worked really hard to record nearly 20 songs in 2019 and we’ve never been very good at sitting still as a band. It’s been a challenge for sure, but we’re always up for a good challenge. There’s more to come from The Knitts before 2020 is over and we’re hoping to be a consistent and reliable source of entertainment for everyone going forward.