HEAVY MUSIC HISTORY: Laugh Tracks – Knocked Loose
KNOCKED LOOSE are one of the biggest bands in metalcore at the moment. In the last few years they have blazed a trail, garnering Grammy attention and chart success for their 2024 release You Won’t Go Before You’re Supposed To, and securing a major slot opening for METALLICA on their UK/EU 2026 stadium tour. Looking back ten years to the release of their debut album Laugh Tracks you can see that exact relentless spirit behind the band, and the foundations that propelled their career to the trajectory it’s in today.
Released on September 16th 2016, through Pure Noise, the album followed a string of EPs that were building the band’s reputation in hardcore circles. Laugh Tracks exploded the band to public attention, receiving widespread acclaim, with Metal Injection remarking “it is one of the biggest stand outs in 2016” and New Noise likening their malice, heaviness and riffs to SLAYER, CODE ORANGE and COMEBACK KID. At Distorted Sound, we expressed, “This is an album soaked in passion from creators that know what they’re doing and how to do it effectively.”
Their love for hardcore bled through everything they did, emerging from the Oldham County, Kentucky scene with an unrelenting momentum behind them. The release of Laugh Tracks coincided with their support slot on tour with STICK TO YOUR GUNS across the US, and 2017 would see the band tour extensively across the US and UK before securing a headline US tour in 2018 with support from TERROR and JESUS PIECE.
A large part of KNOCKED LOOSE’s enduring legacy finds its roots in Laugh Tracks with the song Counting Worms. Exploding into virality at the time for its vicious barking “arf arf” and snappy but destructive breakdown, the track was a stand out from the off, generating memes and reaction videos. But it has also since gained traction on Tik-Tok, becoming one of their most streamed songs and a staple of their live show.
Watching their 2024 Coachella set, Revolver Magazine describe “The mosh pit is pandemonium, a kinetic flurry of circle-pitters and arm-swingers. And as is custom at KNOCKED LOOSE shows, when Garris barks “arf-arf” before the ass-beating breakdown in “Counting Worms,” the whole venue erupts like a dog kennel at dinner time.” In an interview with Rob Scallon, guitarist Isaac Hale shared “When we were playing like 100-cap rooms, right, as soon as that kicked in, people were in danger, like people could die […] Now when we kick into Counting Worms, everyone’s like, ‘Yay! Happy fun time!’ like, ‘Yeah, I saw a video of a dog running around to this,’ whereas I used to see people getting knocked out.”
Moving into mainstream circles has seen a shift in the crowds drawn to KNOCKED LOOSE, but it has never seen them compromise on the heaviness of the shows. Talking to Metal Hammer, vocalist Bryan Garris shared “We have a setlist that is completely built around crowd participation, and where in our songs we can create moments in a live setting.” The catharsis of Counting Worms is just one of the moments from Laugh Tracks that explodes in their live set. Billy No Mates and Oblivion’s Peak are staples of their shows, and sit brilliantly amongst the sheer force of energy that KNOCKED LOOSE brings to the stage.
Ten years since its release, Laugh Tracks stands as a reminder of who KNOCKED LOOSE are. Precisely crafted breakdowns and ear-splitting riffs abound, and the entire 28 minute whirlwind is razor sharp in its execution, with the tenacity that comes from a band deeply passionate about what they are doing. These have always been the pillars that have seen KNOCKED LOOSE through, and through viral Tik-Tok moments and mainstream acclaim, they are the pillars that have remained fundamental to who they are.
Laugh Tracks was originally released on September 16th, 2016 via Pure Noise Records.
Like KNOCKED LOOSE on Facebook.