Never let it be said that Crows do things by halves – where debut album Silver Tongues was recorded in near-totaldarkness, the sessions for their brilliant follow-up Beware Believers were marked with games of hide and seek where the seeker carried knives.
In doing so, the band have spoon-fed reviewers the perfect line, because where Silver Tongues was thick with heavy, inky atmosphere, Beware Believers is all sharp edges and flashes of steel. Opening track 'Closer Still' crashes on the floodlights, blowing away the Covid cobwebs with a bruising continuation of their debut's mid-tempo majesty, but the record's default speed is quite a bit higher. Latest single, anti-Brexit anthem 'Garden of England' is visceral punk, pure and simple, while 'The Servant' is rocket fuel through headphones – the mind boggles at what the stage-seasoned Londoners will do with it live.
Crows are masters at post-punk in its more cantankerousform, snarling through singles 'Room 156' and 'Slowly Separate', but are far from one-dimensional. The discordant singsong on the Bambara-esque 'Moderation' is downright unsettling, and 'Healing' is altogether more claustrophobic (and Mancunian), James Cox sanding down his vocals to pay his Ian Curtis dues.
Closing track 'Sad Lad' is genuinely beautiful in a crashing-wave sort of way, an emotional ode to cult lo-fi singer-songwriter Daniel Johnston which reveals a different side to the Crows catharsis which is all the more special for its brief appearance.
And catharsis is really what Beware Believers is all about – its creation cruelly derailed by the pandemic means its arrival hits even harder, and whether reflective or roaring the band are one of 2022's most exhilarating and essential coping mechanisms.
Words - Joe Ponting
(LIVE REVIEW FROM THE LENDING ROOM, LEEDS, APRIL 10TH)
A scheduling dilemma means It’s The Lending Room where we find ourselves, climbing the stairs for Crows eagerly anticipated Leeds show rather than the familiar Brudenell . To be fair, Crows would triumph in any venue on the back of their recent magnificent album release ‘Beware Believers’. The really big hitters of this post punk angsty record come out fast from the traps, spitting with an intense dark fury inside The Lending Room . ‘Closer Still’, ‘Garden Of England’ and ‘Slowly Separate’ whipping up the increasingly heavy atmosphere.
Months spent in lockdown have clearly given them the ammunition to take this playing-live-to-a-crowd-thing again by the balls. The thundering Room 156 sounds utterly huge. Singer James Cox offers his thanks to an appreciative Sunday night crowd. His powerfully clear vocals are immense and hang as heavy as the relentless drums and crunching guitar noise. There’s a brutal honesty heaving from every pore here.
No longer just that support band to your IDLES, Crows are simply stunning, festival ready and coming for you .
Words - Pete Jackson
Crows official
Beware Believers is released 1st April via Bad Vibrations Records