Crawlers – EP Review

In an absolute sea of noise, standing out with an alternative rock EP is just about impossible. Just about. Not quite, though, as Crawlers demonstrate with their EP, EP. Four tracks that provide a nice sampler of their work so far, and what a selection it is. The Liverpool-based four-piece storm through with an understanding not of crafting a new sound but investing time into the alternative rock genre and giving their delicate, effective spin on the oversaturated state of it all. Crawlers are thankfully more than capable of crashing through, and do so with a talent that is rare to find in the sea of alternative rock and independent music.

Regret feels like the real core of opening track Come Over (again). Not just an obvious one for the title but anger toward actually following through with that. Great lyrical qualities from Holly Minto are bolstered extraordinarily well by the chord progression and gradual build. Its payoff is a quality found in the grunge nature of this EP. Not quite as barbaric or uncoordinated as the thrashy styles of Unwound or Nirvana, there is far more sophistication and a pop-like structure to Crawlers. That defines the band well, as quality musicians whose efforts are tirelessly heard throughout this four-track EP. It has time for those darker moments, see the opening of Monroe for that, but much of the focus is on lyrical quality and musicianship.

Come Over (again) may be a misleading track, then. Because after that ends, its vague pop charms are turned on their head with a darker style that not even Pixies could make sense of. Quality. Supreme quality. Monroe is a desperately unique track that crashes through with uniquely suggestive, sharp lyrics. Again, that harshness comes in waves, from the bass guitar striking through and the repetition of “virgin of the night” which swings through with a chaser-like effect to the opening track of EP, Crawlers understand mood and tone more than anything. They also give way to the inevitable need to break from the harsher tones. Breathe is of the same quality but a little more instrumentally simplified in its introduction, a bit more of a rock track that gives Minto a bit of space to flex those simpler charms of lyrical production.

Straight back to it though with EP closer, Statues. Tremendously dark and dirty, but genuinely so. That is the key. It is easy to masquerade as a grunge act and not experience the harsh guitar work of Amy Woodall or the tremendously important work Liv Kettle provides on bass, but few can say they do it better than Crawlers. The usual route of drink, sex, drugs and the coping mechanisms they provide are rattled through with unique clarity and real, intense anger that Crawlers adapt well, and frequently so. Consistency is better than clarity, and while the strange effect of Crawlers is thrashy, pop-centric tracks, their four-track EP has an incredible breadth of their quality not just as genre musicians but as exemplary, seasoned performers. That blend is hard to come by and it is harder still to showcase that in just four tracks. Crawlers make it look far too easy.