An Evening With Knives – End of Time
Release Date: 14th March 2025
Label: Argonauta Records
Bandcamp
Genre: Sludge, Heavy Metal, Post-Metal.
FFO: Baroness, Mastodon, DVNE, Cult of Luna.
Review By: Andy Spoon
Dutch 3 piece post-metal act An Evening with Knives is poised to release their third studio album End of Time on March 14th, 2025 on Argonauta Records. The album will appeal to fans of the heavy, crushing post metal sound shared by Cult of Luna or DVNE with a unique vocal flavor and sludgy tone that feels a purposely less-polished for that grunge-y and garage band feel, giving the album a visceral tone that blends stoner and post-metal, at least to my ears.
Given that it’s a three-piece act, it’s difficult to expect there to be mountainous depth, which definitely lends itself to the desired tone of the album. There are a couple of leads and layered guitar notes, but the obvious intent of the album is to show a “Stripped down” sound that doesn’t really require a huge production. I think that the original sludge concept was probably more like An Evening With Knives, rather than mega-acts like DVNE, who are focused on layers upon layers of tracks and samples. There’s certainly nothing wrong with either, but I think that it’s evident that An Evening With Knives is going to appeal to the people who want that raw, unpolished sound.
End of Time features 8 tracks, which seems to be adequate for the LP length, although it definitely could have been a little longer, at least to my ears. In many cases of 8-track LPs, there are numerous 8-minute long tracks and interludes. That’s not to say that more material was necessary, though, as I think that the album definitely got its message through on 8 tracks. The overall tone of the album was consistent and conveyed without getting out of the intended groove, something that is expected for a third studio album, but altogether important to acknowledge. I can’t really say what present fans will say, but I definitely don’t think that the album falls apart with any track, which absolutely matters when reviewing a whole album.
The main thing that comes through is guitarist/vocalist Marco Gelissen’s unique chesty-but-raspy vocal delivery, which combines melodic notes with a raspy distortion that reminds me of Tom Araya or other thrash artists. It gives a very unique tone to the band’s music, which would allow a listener to immediately recognize the artist in a playlist, which is so much more important that most artists account for in today’s market.
I think that An Evening With Knives is one of those bands who could absolutely be heard in a playlist, or Gelissen’s voice would be recognized if added as a guest vocal. I hope that An Evening With Knives capitalizes on this, as they have seemed to carve out a sound that they can count on. I think that if you’re looking for a little bit of Cult of Luna or DVNE with the vocals of Tom Araya, you are going to probably find An Evening With Knives’ latest album, End of Time, a fun listen that digs into the low and grumbly register.
(3 / 5)
