knife
knife

The Knife – Shaking the Habitual Show – April 30 – Terminal 5 – NYC

Terminal 5 is a multi-level concert venue in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood. An expansive dance floor is anchored by a colorful disco ball hanging from the ceiling retracting and recreating various colored light beams createing a hypnotic atmosphere where one is ready to begin “moving to be moved.” That quote comes from the opening act, ‘DEEP Aerobics’ (short for “Death Electro Emo Protest Aerobics”) – not a typical opening act by any means. The person in charge of this creation – a crowd interaction collectivist demonstration – is Miguel Gutierrez, a rambunctious self-identified queer Palestinian-American. We then practiced dance movements meant to engage the crowd and create a feeling of togetherness amongst us. Judging by the duds I was standing around, whom I will say refused to participate – the crowd stretched, shook limbs, shoulders and buts until Gutierrez decided we were energized enough and screaming loudly we could finally have the KNIFE!

Swedish electronic duo the Knife is comprised by siblings Karin Dreijer Andersson and Olof Dreijer. The two reached pop culture acclaim with their 2003 album “Deep Cuts.” It wasn’t until three years later in 2006 that they had their first tour in support of the album “Silent Shout.” For those who don’t know, the Knife are the darlings of anti-pop culture. After the critical acclaim of “Heartbeats” it seems like their popularity inflated, yet they managed to remain true to their roots. After the release of “Silent Shout” they fell off the radar, each member respectively interacting through solo projects, while growing exponentially in popularity. In 2010, “Tomorrow in a Year” was released. This project was a noise opera collaboration with Mt. Sims and Planningtorock. It was an extraordinary project that pushed their dimensionality to new heights and worked to estrange themselves from that pop culture niche they had fallen into.

In April 2013 “Shaking the Habitual” was released. A two disc neon pink and teal green album with a wonderful manifesto written by New York writer Jess Arnt. Catalogue that name for later for it is extremely relevant. Now it is 2014, the Knife has nothing left to prove and no one to encourage or please. They are working toward political exclusion of systems and the inclusion of all genders, working ultimately to abolish and disband those constructs.

The show opened up with very indistinct noises permeating our ears. A lone person stood bathed in bright white light playing one of the many handmade instruments that were invented specifically for this album, to the opening song, “Wrap Your Arms Around Me.” It is not long before the music picks up and we, all three levels cheer as a flurry of dancers come out onstage in teal, purple, aqua jumpsuits, they create this spectacular multi-dimensional choreographed performance which was the show, as one of the many people on stage, Karin mostly retained her anonymity. Notably she was not always the lead vocalist, several of the women apart of the all-female dance collective jumped in to offer or at other times, the choreography was offered to recordings.

The turning point in the performance began when one of the glitter faced painted ladies begin discussing the ideal body. A spoken word poem written by Jess Arnt served as the basis for this moment, called “Collective Body Possum.” This called for a massive body one with “two dicks, and five holes” in “all colors” and then decry against bathrooms, banishing them altogether – something I particularly appreciated as gender complexities can make public restrooms a nightmare for some.

This show was really a testament to the title, what could it mean to shake the habitual per say? To perhaps rearrange and appropriate gender constructs, or altogether abolishing those constructs in favor of a more politically sound environment. Touching. And right on point. At the merch table there were several brightly colored sweatshirts, in yellow, orange and blue declaring “Let’s talk about gender baby, Let’s talk about sex baby” running along either side of the sleeves. Highlights included hearing “Without You My Life Would Be Boring,” to which all members of the dance troop engaged in a stage wide performance with all members walking around the stage to construct a triangle in the spirit of a catwalk. Other highlights include an electric oboe that was played at times, “Silent Shout,” “A Tooth for an Eye,” and though most people would stifle my voice if they heard me say, but thankfully, NO “Heartbeats.”

I feel like the image contrived from that song is clearly against the progress the Knife has made in their collective project. This idea of visibility and shattering the norms inflicted into society is a refreshing burst of air, that as it stands in 2014 is unavoidable, inescapable, and vastly relevant to the direction in which we need to move. The Knife has since packed up and moved beyond their two date feature at Terminal 5. For me, waiting over ten years for that show, it could not have been more satisfying or more engaging than it was Wednesday night. If ever one has the chance to see them perform make all necessary arrangements to do so!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVeKL3ptOUI

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