There was a popular fantasy author who, when starting out in his career, went to the bookstore, saw what kind of book sold exceptionally-well, went home, and wrote that book. When eventually he published it, the book was a bestseller. He now has an enduring career. There are also two versions of every piece of art. There is the version you have made (or want to make), and then there is the most accessible version of it.
These are the ideas that gave birth to “Knock Knock” which is (as of now) our most successful song. In terms of streaming numbers and acclaim, it beats out all of Act I: Nefarious Schemes to Murder Lady Midnight — even with all of those songs combined. Pleasantly surprising, but not all surprising. Probably like a lot of artists, I don’t conduct much “market research” when I’m creating art. That is the work of businessmen, gatekeepers and “experts.” I mean: Act I, our previously-released album, is not normal music. It is difficult to digest, at times meandering, and takes more than a by-chance listen to fully appreciate. But then, that’s what we intended to make. Despite knowing we often sabotage our chances of mainstream success by making stubbornly-niche art, making art that is true to us is important. Black Dime Cabaret is Black Dime Cabaret because of albums like Act I.
That is to say, “Knock Knock” was created in response to that album. I didn’t think that we had that one easily-accessible track yet. Even our simpler songs, like “Black Dime Cabaret” and “Ode to Lady Midnight” have fundamental flaws (in my opinion) that prevent them from being mainstream hits. “BDC” lacks a familiar rock orchestration and emotion, yet is too “rock” to attract any other audience. “Ode” takes too long to get into, and, well, has some… performance issues. These are small roadblocks that, in the creative process, are intentional (sometimes), yet make it difficult to promote to a mainstream audience who are bombarded with content and are difficult to please. This is not to say we are generally targeting a mainstream audience, but that our true fans — our super fans — ought to come from somewhere, and you have to admit, the mainstream audience is a big pool to pick from.
None of this works if you’re bad at writing songs, if your band is bad, if your vocals are bad, or if the song is just boring. Of course, that fantasy author I mentioned in the beginning had to actually be capable of writing a good book. But, in my opinion, taking care of that is the easy part. This is all not to say that “Knock Knock” was nothing but a product of chasing trends and looking for what works. It is still a Black Dime Cabaret song, built with passion. It still has many characteristics of a Black Dime Cabaret song: the orchestrations, the storytelling, the horror, the romance. And, obviously, us. There even remains bizarre elements such as comical sound effects and an unconventional monologue in the middle. Yet all these things exist within a song that is, due to its fundamental simplicity, accessible. The song is fast and there is no deviation from the core idea, no sudden turns or shifts. It is, for the most part, expected.
I’m pretty sure it was Ben Levin (ex-Bent Knee) who said that there is the song you write and then the most accessible version of that song. The version of “Knock Knock” that we recorded is, as far as I believe, the most accessible version of that song. And so I’m not surprised at its success, but delighted and inspired. It is our first time seeing tangible, numerical evidence of all the hard work we’ve been putting in. We’ve had more growth in the past month than we have had in three years.
Whether or not people continue to listen to “Knock Knock” is out of our hands and up to you. There is an entire album of material to dive into, not to mention the two books that are currently released. Act II should be out later this year, as well as “Knock Knock II.” It is the beauty of Black Dime Cabaret, and one of our greatest strengths, that for every “Nefarious Schemes” or “Incantations” you can have a “Knock Knock.” For every Reflections of Fontaine, there is a Ghost of the Count (coming June 2024).
That is all to say, thank you to everybody who has listened to “Knock Knock.” It is our biggest (and only) hit so far, but 10k streams is only the beginning. I’ll see you when it hits 100k.
