Biography

Knavery has spent the past six years in motion. After drummer/bassist Austin Labig (he/him) and guitarist Alex Dahle (he/him) agreed to help Grey Hawson (they/them) upgrade their songwriting projects from acoustic suggestions to full-bodied emotional appeals, the Dayton, Ohio group took shape, later adding second guitarist Nicholas Foley (he/him) and bassist Chase Baechle (he/him). The road to their debut LP, Control included releases that attempted to carve out a clear identity in a crowded Midwest alt-rock scene. Knavery is currently in the studio recording their sophomore album, intent on widening their sonic boundaries. Control creates a sonic universe where unpredictable elements swing into view while the band fights for composure. “Uncover” struts and jags its guitar for a mix of pop-rock vitality and alt-rock grit. “Mood” and “Liminal” have bright, sturdy leads which slice through Hawson’s doublespoken self-sabotage, with the latter featuring a concussive, layered conclusion. Moments like “Outrun” flirt with space-rock ambition, “Infinity” spits venom as a winking skate-punk jam, and “Prisoner” is a smoldering and urgent sinking ship of an arrangement where Hawson’s vocals trail rock bottom. While the record’s palette darts between genre conventions and frustrated lyric sheets at breakneck speed, the band’s core remains focused on the light at the end of the album’s tunneling anxieties—and ultimately, moving on.