Nebraska's Your Own Knife carves dismal moods into thrashes with People Die Here All The Time, a spectacular sonic blend of rigid hardcore and intricate post-punk.

The quartet, fronted by commanding vocalist Alex Steele, spills aggressive delivery out of the gate with "Hell," complete with dissonant chord-work from guitarist Austin Wilson-Scott and blast-beats from drummer Gabe Bierman. "Swim" picks up the groove, layering Steele's performance on a more straight-forward composition. "Stuck" is a tremendously well-written piece with some smart melodic choices, think Thursday at their peak. "Resent" sews right along-side, launching the song key and tempo into a wide open interpretation.

"Displace" opens with sludgy strings from bassist Logan Gomez, devolving into a showcase of double-time, and the heaviest riffs thus far. "Haze" is flooded with group vocals, dipping the album about as far into traditional hardcore as YOK cares to venture. This is, of course, the most redeeming quality of the complete record, the band's homework, instrumentation, and a sparkling flex of their variation of sound, and refusal to stick to the usual tacky cliches of the genre.

"Voyeur" is air-tight, hoisting the guitar grit and Albini style booming drum mix high, and cramming a thesis of the band's flavor profile into a minute thirty-four. "Ambition" is last-up, clocking in at just a bit over three minutes, making it the longest of the collection, and the extra time pays off, serving more facetime with Steele's identifiable delivery and morose picking from Wilson-Scott.

People Die Here All The Time is a remarkable debut, and this band is GOOD. A clever and methodical take on a worn style of music that results in a tremendous piece of art. I've gotta hand it to Your Own Knife for their authenticity, and I am excited for their future. Keep an eye on these guys.