Live Review + Gallery | Knocked Loose @ Electric, Bristol

Knocked Loose

Electric, Bristol

29th June 2026

Photography by Anna Hatfield

Anna Hatfield

Freelance photographer, videographer, and journalist. Specialising in all things music and will most likely be found in a photo pit somewhere muttering about lighting conditions

Kentucky’s Knocked Loose make their way to Electric Bristol, proving themselves as worthy torchbearers for the hardcore scene

It’s hard to put into words how I find the process of getting kicked in the face and running into to 100 strangers in a sweaty venue enjoyable, but as I leave Knocked Loose’s sold out show at Electric Bristol, all I see are smiling faces.

The energy in the room from the very beginning was absolutely electric (no pun intended) with half the room opening up into a mosh pit from the moment the first of the three fantastic openers came on stage. Initiate, 50 Calibre, and Bodyweb kicked off the show and got the crowd nicely warmed up for the main event. Platforms we erected and the iconic cross at the back of the stage taunted the crowd before the room was plunged into darkness and it lit up the room in all its glory.

Before the band had made it to the front, the instantly recognisable intro to ‘Blinding Faith‘ reverberated through our chests. Hearing my favourite song as the opening to a highly anticipated show was the epitome of instant gratification and I screamed along with the rest of the crowd. Despite being completely focused on shooting, us photographers in the pit still got a good sing along going.

I’ve got to take a moment to mention the lighting design of the whole show. The colours used throughout perfectly correlated to the theme of the album cover of each song. The crowd became an integral part of the show, as they do in any hardcore show, and the bright lights gave everyone their time in the spotlight. From two-stepping to spin kicks to crowd surfing, everyone had their moment to be the centre of attention, including myself!

Despite the packed-out venue and seemingly erratic nature of hardcore dancing, I’ve never felt more at home than in a crowd like this. The comradery in the room was astounding, with everyone looking out for each other, helping people up, and checking in with strangers to make sure everyone had the best experience possible.

Front man Byan Garris got the entire room singing along after stating that “this next song changed our lives” before launching into ‘Counting Worms,‘ a song which accelerated the trajectory of the band’s success significantly in late 2016. Their success has only grown, with the band ultimately receiving a grammy nomination last year.

Seeing hardcore become a celebrated genre in mainstream media is such an exciting thing to witness. This band deserves so much praise for what they’ve achieved in a relatively short space of time and are continuing to produce some incredible work. Their latest single ‘Hive Mind‘ went down an absolute treat with everyone tonight.

One of the last songs of the night was ‘Deep in the Willow,‘ which at one point declares that they are indeed “Knocked Loose, mother fucker!”. This perfectly sums up this band’s performance; Completely unapologetic, loud, and full of songs worthy of being screamed back at their creators.