CRAWLERS, THE:
Level the Forest: LP
The Crawlers play old school-flavored hardcore punk infused with pop tinge and lyrics that are—or at least should be—tongue in cheek (see the album title). It’s pretty solid stuff. However, it seems as though they have, as what I will call, “opening band sound.” Opening band sound is not necessarily a bad thing, and not just opening bands fall under this categorization of sound. In fact, it can be rather cool under the right circumstances. Anyhow, opening band sound is a solid sound that can definitely keep you in the bar/basement/club if you are in the mood for a live band. The opening band sound is not a bad sound, but it isn’t what you came to see. It is what you have heard before by someone—someone that you probably can’t remember—but you don’t mind hearing again. The problem with opening band sound is that—though it is solid and reliable—after you hear the band that you came to see, nothing sticks out to you about the band. Though you might not remember anything extraordinary about the band, you’ll still be down to check them out again. –Vincent Battilana (Blind Spot)