Karin Dreijer possesses a unique voice as it is, so when they manipulate it on ‘One Hit’ and alter its pitch to make it sound more masculine, it certainly adds a freaky dimension to the audio proceedings. The track is the penultimate on The Knife’s 2006 album Silent Shout. When I listened to that record for the first time, I think in my first year of uni and way past its initial release date, ‘One Hit’ was the one that instantly stuck. I know, I’ve done posts on ‘Like a Pen’ and ‘Marble House’. But I tell you, ‘One Hit’ was the one Knife song I had on repeat for a while.

It seems that the track is from the point of view of an abuser. A male who’s violent with their partner, a proud advocate of dated stereotypical gender roles… a misogynist to come down to brass tacks. It took a long time for me to get round to checking out the words to this one. Just because the rhythm is too strong. Too much of a bop. Really enjoy the swinging tribal feel that’s going on throughout. Those choruses are an ominous singalong. Dreijer’s already pitched down vocals are then joined by these gang backing vocals that have gone through the same effect. But then these are also backed by some really catchy hooks and melodies on the synthesizers. It’s a weird dynamic going on, but it’s thrilling all the same.

But yeah, there is a true asshole narrator going on. Male privilege, violence against women and male dominance, this track is from the point of view of someone who is in favour of all these things. They have no shame in their dated views on stereotypical gender roles, and are oblivious as to why women wouldn’t want to cook and clean and play the submissive role in the relationship when it seems so obvious that’s what they’re meant for. This isn’t someone we’re meant to empathise with in the slightest. But through indulging in this narrative take, Dreijer also simultaneously conjures a mocking attack on the men in the real world who follow these ideals. The narrator here’s a simpleton to say the least, so what better way to expose these than highlighting their views to let the listener realise just how dumb it all is. There isn’t another track quite like it, in my eyes.