LIVE REVIEW: Water From Your Eyes and Her New Knife @ the High Noon Saloon
WORDS by James Norcross, photos BY BAILEY KRAUSE
“Perfected chaos” is the phrase that I would use to describe the evening of music that Her New Knife and Water from Your Eyes provided last night at the High Noon Saloon. While having vastly different soundscapes, the two acts left similar imprints on my mind.
Following a 15-minute delay due to utility issues, Philadelphia-based shoegaze group, Her New Knife, took the stage of the Western-themed venue under dark, navy-blue lighting. A looping video showcasing text of the band name with a blinking cursor played in the background of their half hour long set, contributing to the digital aesthetic cultivated during the show. The band has a knack for playing with your expectations, with their Bandcamp artist photo being a picture of the four members with face filters that make them look like pale aliens – and this was indicative of their set. You cannot pin them down to one thing – they’ll keep you on your toes with a world of dark guitar tones reminiscent of a sound you just can’t place.
They didn’t speak much on stage apart from introducing their final song, but the silence only enhanced their effortlessly cool aesthetic. Gradually getting noisier as the evening went on, their set was structured like a story set to end at a climax. Drummer Elijah Fraud glued feedback-soaked tones from guitarists Edgar Atencio and Ben Kachler together with tight rhythms had me pulling out my phone to record more than once. It’s easy to see how coming from DIY scenes (with Ethel Cain as one of their first audience members) has influenced their raw and distorted shoegaze sound built around jam breaks and unique song structures. As a musician in college, it's heartwarming to see a band from relatable roots reach such a wide audience.
After a feedback-stuffed finale, Chicago-based Art Pop group Water from Your Eyes began a dense set of guitar riff-driven post punk. Following an instrumental intro, they kicked off with “Born 2,” a track echoing the thrashing distortion of Feeble Little Horse and set the tone of controlled chaos for the remainder of the show.
The group began on the sole premise of wanting to sound like New Order, but it’s hard to discern these origins given how singular their sound has become. Guitarist Nate Amos, known for his solo work as This is Lorelai, provided twangy riffs over instrumentals of varying genres, tied together with Rachel Brown (Thanks for Coming)’s confidently soft-spoken talk singing. As the set went on, they constantly challenged expectations of what a band can be. The soundscape varied from Indietronica to Dance-Punk and others but never got stuck in one zone for an extended period of time. The visuals pushed this digital listening experience further, blobs of orange and blue clashing through data moshed videos on the screen behind the duo.
Nate Amos played beautiful country rock riffs with no drums or vocals on “It’s a Beautiful Place”, inviting the listener to a feast of bends and twangs that transition smoothly into “Blood on the Dollar”, a track that delves into the Americana influences teased earlier. It’s a unique moment during that show that feels like the natural falling action after the prior intensity, and a highlight of the show for me. Brown delivered beautiful melodies that make the track feel like end credits music for some 8-bit indie video game set in the Midwest.
The duo left the audience with a synth driven encore, “Track Five”, that would make James Murphy proud. As I walked back to my apartment, I was in a hypnotic trance. Before this show, I had only heard one of their songs, but having seen them live, I’m impressed by their meticulously cultivated aesthetics.