The Knitters
Landscapeyes
Backgroundgroup_or_band
OriginLos Angeles, California, U.S.
Genre
Years active1985–present
LabelSlash
Spinoff of
Current members

The Knitters are a Los Angeles-based band who play country, rockabilly and folk music. The Knitters' name is a play on the name of the folk group The Weavers.[2]

Background

The Knitters formed in 1982 as a side project to the band members' primary commitments. Vocalist Exene Cervenka, singer/bassist John Doe and drummer DJ Bonebrake were three of the four members of the punk band X; guitarist Dave Alvin was a member of roots rock band The Blasters as well as The Flesh Eaters; and stand-up bassist Jonny Ray Bartel was a member of blues-rock band The Red Devils.[3]

The Knitters' debut album Poor Little Critter on the Road was released in 1985. It included mainly traditional and cover songs, together with some X songs performed in an acoustic style. The album drew on blues, folk, country and rockabilly influences. In 1999, the label Bloodshot Records released a track-by-track tribute to the album entitled Poor Little Knitter on the Road.[4]

After the debut album's release, all the group members continued to work with their primary bands. Dave Alvin also later pursued a solo career.[5]

Twenty years later, in 2005, the group released their second and ironically-titled album, The Modern Sounds of the Knitters. John Doe has been quoted as saying "The Knitters, like their music, don't do anything hasty.[3] Since our last record's been out for a while and it did pretty good, we figured it was just about time to put out another." The Modern Sounds of the Knitters has been well received by critics.[3]

It's like if the guys at Sun Records dropped LSD and made a record with Lead Belly and the Carter Family. That's what The Knitters sound like.

In March 2024 during the South by Southwest festival, the Knitters reunited for one performance in Austin, Texas, as part of an all-day concert in memory of Mojo Nixon.[6][7][8]

Discography

Reviews

References

  1. ^ "Review of The Modern Sounds Of The Knitters". Rhino. Archived 2007-06-09 at the Wayback Machine.
  2. ^ Lankford, Jr, Ronnie D. "The Knitters". All Music. Retrieved 2016-07-02.
  3. ^ "Beyond and Back with the Knitters". Warped Reality. 2006-01-22. Retrieved 2016-03-23.
  4. ^ "Rhino Recommends – Rzine No. 482". Rhino. Archived 2007-06-09 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2007-06-09.
  5. ^ "The Knitters, The Modern Sounds of the Knitters". Harp. Archived from the original on 2007-09-26. Retrieved 2007-09-26.
  6. ^ "In Memoriam: Mojo Nixon (1957-2024), Or "The Life And Supremely Weird Times Of Neill Kirby McMillan, Jr."". Stegall, Tim "Napalm". March 15, 2024. Retrieved 2024-03-29.
  7. ^ "Mojo's final mayhem!!". The Continental Club. 2024. Archived 2024-03-30 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2024-03-29.
  8. ^ "The Knitters (Full Set) - Mojo's Final Mayhem March 16, 2024". Miller, Thomas. March 18, 2024. Retrieved 2024-03-29.