All I know about The Knife is they're a way-out electronica band that won a bunch of alternative music awards for their debut album "Silent Shout". I have the CD, it's weird and innovative and I like it, but not too often. I like some electronica quite a bit but this stuff isn't terribly melodic. It isn't thumping/jackhammer stuff at all, definitely intelligently done by real musicians. I can't think of a good parallel, my depth of knowledge isn't deep enough.
It is definitely interesting and a lot of folks are anxiously awaiting the second release.