When it comes to origin stories, The Knocks have a good one. After meeting at The
New School in New York City, Ben “B-Roc” Ruttner and James “JPatt” Patterson both
found themselves in need of a place to live. The two moved in together, and quickly set
about making their neighbors hate them. “Our apartment was this small, shitty Avenue
C apartment with paper thin walls. We both had studio set-ups in our rooms,” explains
B-Roc. “It would be loud as hell, and the neighbors hated it. They’d knock on the walls
and bang on the ceiling. We would go into each other’s rooms and say ‘I just got the
knocks.’”
Declared by the NME as one of the “20 hottest producers in music” as “cred-pop’s
answer to the Neptunes” by The Guardian - they are now one of the most buzzed-about
duos on the electronic circuit. JPatt’s background in soul and funk and B-Roc’s years
spent immersed in trip-hop and hip-hop beats has allowed them to quic...
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When it comes to origin stories, The Knocks have a good one. After meeting at The
New School in New York City, Ben “B-Roc” Ruttner and James “JPatt” Patterson both
found themselves in need of a place to live. The two moved in together, and quickly set
about making their neighbors hate them. “Our apartment was this small, shitty Avenue
C apartment with paper thin walls. We both had studio set-ups in our rooms,” explains
B-Roc. “It would be loud as hell, and the neighbors hated it. They’d knock on the walls
and bang on the ceiling. We would go into each other’s rooms and say ‘I just got the
knocks.’”
Declared by the NME as one of the “20 hottest producers in music” as “cred-pop’s
answer to the Neptunes” by The Guardian - they are now one of the most buzzed-about
duos on the electronic circuit. JPatt’s background in soul and funk and B-Roc’s years
spent immersed in trip-hop and hip-hop beats has allowed them to quickly ascend the
production ranks. Initially gaining recognition for their remixes for artists including Haim,
Santigold, Foster the People, Two Door Cinema, Ellie Goulding, Chiddy Bang,Passion
Pit and The 1975, they eventually found themselves experimenting with sounds of their
own.
B-Roc and JPatt didn’t think much would come of a nearly five-minute track they had
been building, all tense beats and tingling synths. “It kind of started out as a joke,” says
B-Roc. “But people were liking that more than the stuff we produced for other people,”
says B-Roc. “It felt right.” The duo quickly discovered a newfound freedom in creating
their own songs. “It's better because it's ours, and we can do whatever we want with it,”
explains JPatt.
When The Knocks realized the chord they’d struck, they opened their own custom-built
studio Heavy Roc Music on the Lower East Side in New York City. Over the past three
years, the duo has been jet-setting around the globe for DJ gigs, sharing stages with
Grouplove, M.I.A., Two Door Cinema Club, Dragonette, Sleigh Bells, Chromeo and
chrome… all while releasing infectious singles that have turned The Knocks into blog
darlings. After releasing “Dancing with the DJ” in 2010 via Heavy Roc , the song shot to
#1 on Hype Machine and hit #1 on Japan’s Electronic Songs Chart, with heavy rotation
at JJJ. Their Magic EP showed a more mature side, continuing that progression on
singles 'Modern Hearts' featuring St Lucia, and the new EP Comfortable - out on Neon
Gold Feb 17th. Be prepared, because The Knocks will be knocking at your door and
stereo very soon.
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