The Night Hardcore Took Over Network TV
It was raining in Los Angeles on November 26, 2024. Most people watching Jimmy Kimmel Live! that night were probably expecting the usual: a dry monologue, maybe a charming anecdote from a movie star, and a polite three-minute pop song to close things out. Instead, they got a face-melting dose of reality from Oldham County, Kentucky.
Knocked Loose didn't just play a song. They basically staged a hostile takeover of the outdoor stage.
Bryan Garris walked out looking like he was ready for a fight, and when the first note of "Suffocate" hit, the collective jaw of middle America dropped. It wasn’t just the music. It was the atmosphere. You had Poppy—decked out like a high-fashion nightmare—delivering her verse while the rain literally hissed off the pyrotechnics.
It was visceral. It was loud. And honestly? It was exactly what late-night TV has been missing for about twenty years.
Why Everyone Is Still Talking About the "JUNT"
The internet went into a complete meltdown the next morning. If you spend any time on Facebook, you probably saw the screenshots. One particular comment became an instant legend in the metal community. Some parent wrote a long, rambling post about how their "adolescent son" was in actual tears by the "third or fourth JUNT of the guitars."
They demanded a formal apology.
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Imagine being a staffer at ABC and getting an email asking for an apology because a heavy metal band was... heavy. That’s the beauty of knocked loose on jimmy kimmel. It pierced the bubble. We’ve spent so long in an era of sanitized, algorithmic indie-pop that hearing a "pig squeal" on national television felt like a glitch in the Matrix.
The Setlist: More Than Just One Song
While the TV broadcast only showed "Suffocate," the crowd at the El Capitan Entertainment Centre got a full-blown mini-concert. We’re talking five tracks of pure, unadulterated chaos.
- Suffocate (feat. Poppy): The Grammy-nominated centerpiece. The syncopated breakdown at the end is basically a rhythmic assault.
- Don't Reach For Me: High energy, fast-paced, and absolutely zero room to breathe.
- Moss Covers All / Take Me Home: They transitioned these perfectly, just like on the album You Won’t Go Before You’re Supposed To.
- Sit & Mourn: This was the closer. Seeing the band synchronized headbanging in the pouring rain during the finale was, frankly, cinematic.
The gear nerds had a field day too. Isaac Hale was wielding that custom white Ibanez Iceman, looking like he was trying to saw the stage in half. The mix was surprisingly good for a late-night show—usually, the sound techs at these things have no idea what to do with distorted bass, but Kevin Otten’s tone cut through like a chainsaw.
Is This the New "Satanic Panic"?
A lot of the backlash felt like a throwback to the 80s. People were calling the performance "gibberish" and "scary." But that’s why it matters.
Bryan Garris has talked before about how the band likes "squeezing into places they don't belong." They played Coachella. They toured with Slipknot. But playing knocked loose on jimmy kimmel was different because it wasn't an opt-in experience. You didn't buy a ticket. You were just sitting on your couch, and suddenly, there’s a guy screaming about suffocation in your living room.
That friction is where art actually happens.
If you look at the YouTube comments on the official upload, it's a war zone. You have 50-year-old dudes saying, "I don't get it, but I respect the energy," and then you have the die-hard fans celebrating the fact that hardcore finally got its flowers on a major stage. It reminds me of when Slipknot played Conan back in the day. It’s a "where were you" moment for the scene.
What Happens Now?
Look, Knocked Loose isn't going to start topping the Billboard Hot 100 next week. That’s not the point. The point is that the gatekeepers are finally realizing there is a massive, hungry audience for heavy music that doesn't compromise.
If you're new to the band because of the Kimmel performance, don't just stop at "Suffocate." Go listen to A Tear in the Fabric of Life. It’s a conceptual masterpiece that’ll make you realize these guys aren't just "screaming gibberish"—they’re writing some of the most complex, emotionally resonant heavy music of the last decade.
Your Knocked Loose Starter Pack:
- Watch the full 16-minute Kimmel set on YouTube. Don't just watch the 3-minute clip. The rain during "Sit & Mourn" is the best part.
- Check out the lyrics. Seriously. Garris writes about grief and anxiety in a way that’s actually pretty poetic if you can get past the "scary" delivery.
- Support the scene. If this performance sparked something in you, find a local hardcore show. It won't have ABC's budget, but the energy is even more intense when you're three feet away from the pit.
The world didn't end because a metalcore band played past 11:30 PM. In fact, for a lot of us, it felt like it was finally waking up.