Photo by Sean Stout

Among the many exciting clues into Scowl’s bright future heard in their excellent 2023 extended play, Psychic Dance Routine, was hearing the Santa Cruz alternative hardcore band stagedive headfirst into bigger hooks without omitting the aggression, like that of the standout (and one of the year’s best tracks) “Shot Down”. As the latest preview from their forthcoming sophomore effort, Are We All Angels, “B.A.B.E” — or “Burned At Both Ends” non-acronymically — is Scowl furher refining the fine art of a big pop with a swift gut punch as frontwoman Kat Moss bringing us into the spirals of the mind during the touring grind. Between the internal monologue screams and the serenity prayer that follows, she’s doing the most with mental gymnastics to contain the internal combustion from happening. “Burned at both ends / Yeah, it just won’t let up/ I want to catch my breath,” she pleas. “Everyone here could you please just shut up? / I gotta catch my breath.” As she suffers for the artist lifestyle, you can’t help but selfishly like it most when she and the band are brought to their brink. It’s their sweet spot.

Edited by: Matthew Brown

Scowl’s Are We All Angels will be released April 4th on Dead Oceans.