Is it me or does it just seem like each new Andrew Jackson Jihad release is becoming something of an event? Certainly their most recent effort is no exception. Knife Man is one of the best albums of 2011. Period. It is an ambitious, freewheeling record that moves easily between the band’s traditional folk-punk roots and full-out punk rock anthems. I suppose Bonnette and Galaty were moving in this direction on 2009’s Can’t Maintain, but there is something so self-assured about where they are now. It is never easy to balance good humor with incisive social criticism, but these dudes make it look easy.

The most striking thing about Knife Man is the quality of the lyrics.  Sixteen songs, 16 variations on a single theme:  “Mean people suck.”  Yet it never gets old or repetitive. Andrew Jackson Jihad are storytellers. The standout track to my ear is the song “Back Pack,” which sounds like nothing else the band has done. It is slow, almost mournful, and it is one of the most troubling “murder ballads” I have heard in a long time:

You were dead by the time that I had found you.
Your blood was spilled on the couch where we had first kissed.
So I carried you west to the sea so I could wash you.
Your body felt just like a back pack.
And I don’t know what they did to your face.
And I don’t like it.

No doubt some listeners will hear the song and question whether it is “punk” at all — but they miss the point. Punk rock is in a new and exciting phase. The ethos is intact, but there is striking diversity in the sounds that constitute the genre. The days when it seemed that punk had been reduced to some simple sonic formula are past — and I hope they are gone for good.

When you hear a record like Knife Man you are opened up to the possibilities, and reminded that great songs are an act of creation. You will also know you are in the presence of a great and important band making music at a very high level.

(Asian Man Records, PO Box 35585 Monte Sereno, CA 95030)