Knives Don't Have Your Back (Dig)

Emily Haines | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 8, 2007)
• Original Release Date: 2006
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Last Gang Records
• ASIN: B000HIVOB4
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #105,726 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Four years and four cities later, Metric's Emily Haines is finally (almost) ready to release her debut solo effort. On September 26, Last Gang Records will release Knives Don't Have Your Back, which was written and recorded in Los Angeles, Montreal, Toronto, and New York over the last four years, and features contributors including Sparklehorse's Scott Minor, Broken Social Scene's Justin Peroff, Stars' Evan Cranley, and Metric's Jimmy Shaw. Though it took Haines four years to complete the album, the singer says she'd been plotting this for years. Among those songs are a track that was written while Haines was studying electroacoustics in Montreal, while some were recorded in Toronto in the winter of 2002, shortly after the death of Haines' father. According to the label, the album is intimate and mellow, featuring piano-driven tracks with string and horn arrangements. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Songstress Haines flexes her solo muscle, September 29, 2006

By 

Ben Rowland (Toronto, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Knives Don't Have Your Back (Dig) (Audio CD)

Anyone who follows the Toronto music scene is no doubt familiar with Emily Haines, the quirky frontwomen of indie band favorites Metric, and occasional member of the excellent rock collective Broken Social Scene. "Knives Don't Have Your Back" is the first commercially released solo album from Haines, not counting her self-released and long out-of-print 1996 debut "Cut in Half and Also Double."

"Knives Don't Have Your Back" is a great album that barely misses the excellent mark, with many of the songs sounding similar and few standout tracks. As a whole, the album is pleasant, melodic, and downbeat - a stark contract to Haines's day job. I see this as more of a strength, as her voice lends itself well to piano-driven ballads, but diehard Metric fans might not be so enthralled. The album starts with three excellent tracks, "Our Hell," "Doctor Blind," and "Crowd Surf off a Cliff." While none of these songs are contenders for extensive radio airings, they are well written and superbly executed soft rock songs. Haines has progressed as a songwriter over the first two Metric albums, and it gets better here. The musical arrangements on later tracks, such as "Reading in Bed," "The Last Page," and "The Lottery" are also high quality, with piano and guitars mixing well with organs, pedal steels, and even trumpet. My one complaint, as noted above, is the "sameness" of the songs. Many of the songs begin and end in a similar fashion, and none of them are standout tracks along the lines of "Death Disco" and "Poster of a Girl." However, I can't resist Emily's voice and songwriting style, so I am far from regretting this purchase.

Mad props also go to the album's packaging. I love albums with extensive liner notes, something that the two Metric albums totally lacked, so this was a nice surprise. The album is presented in a handsome, hardcover digipack, with full lyrics included.

Emily Haines is one of indie rock's most intriguing figures, and like Jenny Lewis, she has proven that she can work within different musical styles while remaining distinctive. Hopefully, her audience will continue to grow as a result.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars For people who have not heard metric, January 14, 2007

By 

lau (throw a dart on a map) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Knives Don't Have Your Back (Dig) (Audio CD)

This is from the perspective of someone who hasn't heard Metric's music before. I am a huge fan of women soloists, tori amos, cat power, beth gibbons, vienna teng, bjork, pj harvey, etc.. and i have to say i havn't herad anything quite like this album. If you like meloncholy female pianists, you should definately suport this woman. "Knives Don't Have Your Back" is very melodic, very stark, humble, and quite poetic. The album is fairly quiet for the most part, but there are some lively and awesome band moments too, mostly in the first half, as in "Mostly Waving" with a hip brass section. "Doctor Blind" is another vibrant favorite. Each song is catchy enough to stand out, even the ones at the end, after a few listens, but there is still a definate unity between all the songs, despite them being written throughout the course of her life. A friend lent this to me and after one listen i was completely addicted. The only song i didn't think was as good as the rest was "lottery", though it's not a bad song, I just don't get what she's really trying to express when she refers "sexual suicide is a new crime, lets commit it". Overall her lyrics are both fresh and familiar, "...rather give the world away than wake up lonely.","she calls around finds me crying, wish i was capable of lying sometimes" Other favorites are "Crowd Surf Off a Cliff" and "Reading in Bed".

This album has a place next to the best of them.

18 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Beauty at it's best!, September 29, 2006

By 

Cale E. Reneau "audiooverflow.com" (Conroe, Texas United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Knives Don't Have Your Back (Dig) (Audio CD)

Any diehard Metric fan who is desperately searching for some new Metric-ness from Emily Haine's first solo album, "Knives Don't Have Your Back," should turn away and pretend this album doesn't exist. Honestly, "Knives Don't Have Your Back" is many things. But it is not a Metric album and with the exception of Haine's always-beautiful voice, there is nothing here that would even hint that this woman is partly responsible for the indie-rock sensation that is Metric.

No, this album is far different than anything we've heard from Emily before, and though it could potentially turn away many of her fans, a thoughtful listen will reveal the beauty of "Knives Don't Have Your Back."

Let's run through this real quick. Piano? Check. Emily's vocals? Check. Drums, guitars, and other instrumentations? *crickets* Cleverness aside, that's essentially what this album is; Emily playing the piano and singing. Sure, there's an occasional percussion track here and there and a hint of bass guitar or two, but for the most part, it's as simple as Emily on piano. The surprise here is that it actually works, and I can't imagine this album being a success in any other form than it is.

Emily's lyrics have been a bit personal from time to time, but she really opens up on "Knives..."

Take for example, "Numb is the new high, old memories die out 'til nothing and nowhere is golden" which is immensely more poignant and touching than any Metric song has ever been. But fans of Emily's biting style of social commentary will have no problem with this album, either. Having never shied away from telling it like it is, Emily comes off as brilliant with a line like "We don't know how to help. Only know how to hump," and even though it's presented in a manner that is the exact opposite of Metric, it's the same Emily Haines that Metric fans have come to love.

Enough on the lyrics. As I stated before, this album is really just Emily on piano. The thing is, with such great lyrics flowing through the heart of every song, the omission of a band really makes these songs all the more powerful and touching. It adds a bit of vulnerability to a woman who we've only seen rocking out with a bunch of boys. It's personal, amazingly personal, and Haines is really allowing herself to be vulnerable. But beyond that, there is actually some great music here, albeit toned-down and somewhat simplistic.

As a fan of Metric, and now of Haines, herself, I have to say that I was initially disappointed with "Knives Don't Have Your Back." It is definitely not a Metric album. But what it is, is beautiful, touching, personal, and, at times, heartbreaking. Any fan of Emily Haines' lyrical stylings should definitely check out this album. Although I can't see myself making this album a priority for months to come, I can definitely foresee it getting multiple plays in my stereo, if only as a soundtrack to the winding down of my days.

Recommended for fans of Tori Amos, Metric, and anyone who really wants to know all about the inner workings of Emily Haines.

Key Tracks:
1. "Our Hell"
2. "Doctor Blind"
3. "The Lottery"
4. "The Maid Needs a Maid"



3 out of 5 Stars