London based Crows has been a regular face in the garage rock and post punk scenes since 2012, bringing a noisier and more aggressive take on the styles on their earlier material. Each release has seen them make some tweaks to their approach, and this year’s Reason Enough has some of the biggest changes yet. Stylistically the material continues to find a sweet spot between post punk, garage rock, and even some alternative/shoegaze elements, but the noise level has been reduced and the writing is more focused on melody and gloomier atmosphere. There are a few moments that don’t quite stand out, but overall album three finds Crows successfully pivoting to a different take on their sound.
What is immediately noticeable when pressing play on Reason Enough is Crows has generally slowed things down to let the gloomier, melancholic atmosphere stand out a bit more on this album. Where Beware Believersmoved at a brisker pace that gave off more of a punk or garage rock feel for most of its run-time, the title track on Reason Enough starts things off with a slower and methodical build-up. There’s still a bit of bite to the instrumentation as the more jagged bass lines drive things forward, but the guitar tone is cleaner and the way the melodies expand give off more of a post punk vibe. It’s an effective opener that draws you in with somber and hypnotic instrumentation, but things immediately change when “Bored” kicks in. This song feels the closest to the previous album, as things move at a brisker pace and the guitar work is noticeable noisier and more punk leaning. You’ll notice a similar approach on “Every Day Of Every Year” where the noise level again goes up a notch, but these two tracks feel like outliers compared to the rest of the material. The bulk of what’s on Reason Enough comes across somewhere between moodier post punk and sweeping alternative rock where the tone remains somber but the melodies steal the show (“Lie To Me” in particular gives me a distinct REM feel). When these ideas reach their peak on songs like “Vision Of Me”, “Silhouettes”, and “D-Gent” they make you want to immediately hit the repeat button as the writing really sticks with you, but a few of the others run together slightly.
The change in sound places even more emphasis on vocalist James Cox, as the clearer sound and emphasis on melody makes it so his voice soars over the recording. He never overpowers the rest of the band, but songs like “Vision Of Me” and “Living On My Knees” showcase different sides of the performance. The former adopts an airier approach where Cox initially blends in with the layers of guitar and bass but starts to soar above them by the end, while the latter brings in a bit more grit to the singing. I found this to be an area where Reason Enough really shined, as Crows shakes up from song to song whether Cox’s singing is more introspective and somber versus more jagged and in your face. It gives the material some additional bite even when the guitars are strictly on the mellower end of the spectrum, and the variety also helps Crows stand out a bit more from the other bands of this type.
Crows has traded some of their noisier elements in for moodier melodies and a bit more of an indie/alternative rock feel, but they haven’t lost the rougher edges in the process. There are some strong hooks here that will have you singing along to both the slower and more up-tempo numbers, and while a few sections do blur together over repeat listens the peaks make up for it. Considering just how much noteworthy post punk and darker alternative rock has come out of the UK this year, Crows has what it takes to stand out and I’ll be curious to see if they continue to push further into this direction in the future. Reason Enough is available from Bad Vibrations Records.
-Review by Chris Dahlberg