Scowl aren't particularly interested in your hardcore rulebook. The Santa Cruz outfit blindsided everyone in 2021 with '
How Flowers Grow', a 15-minute blast of frenetic punk that established them as scene heroes. Now on their second album '
Are We All Angels' – and with the backing of indie powerhouse Dead Oceans (home to Phoebe Bridgers and Mitski) – they're gleefully tearing up whatever blueprint they established.
Rather than retreating from the genre-blurring tendencies they explored on 2023's '
Psychic Dance Routine' EP, Scowl double down on their refusal to stay in their lane. Reuniting with producer Will Yip (Turnstile, Title Fight) and bringing in mixer Rich Costey, the band embraces a cleaner, punchier sound that gives their aggression room to breathe – and their melodic instincts space to flourish.
Lead single '
Special' announces this evolution with confidence. What might once have been a straightforward hardcore track now swaggers with distinctly grunge-adjacent riffs and an arena-ready chorus. Frontwoman Kat Moss half-jokingly acknowledged the track's "arena rock" energy, but there's truth in the jest – this is Scowl thinking bigger without apologising for it.
'
B.A.B.E.' (short for 'Burned At Both Ends') demonstrates their newfound dynamic control, switching from infectious hooks to relentless hardcore fury with precision. '
Not Hell, Not Heaven' takes a different tack, riding a mid-tempo groove and an immediately memorable chorus hook. The fuller production gives the band's anger a broader canvas, proving that accessibility and authenticity aren't mutually exclusive concepts.
