I’ve covered a lot of bands in the Scrunchies family tree in the past, so Colossal is pretty much what I expected. Yet, at the same time, it’s a slight turnaround in style for the band, who released Feral Coast in 2022, which was a punkier sound. Their third LP, on new label Learning Curve, Colossal takes a hard ‘90s turn while still sounding very much in the here and now. You’ll get feedback, shouted vocals, and loud guitars. It pays homage to some ‘90s classics of both the underground and the mainstream but it also features contemporary vocal trade-offs, more nuanced mixing, and lyricism reflective of the present. It’s also the one of the last recordings by Steve Albini.
In many ways I struggle to describe Scrunchies because they pull from so many sources and integrate everything so well that the sound is familiar, but fluid and new. It doesn’t jar you with sudden style shifts; it just keeps coming at you. I might just say that Scrunchies play heavy rock that pulls from the canon of underground, left of the dial music since the mid ‘80s. It’s often grungy, sometimes Riot Grrl, sometimes punk, and always engaging. It’s heavy and melodic, noisy but also radio-friendly (at times). “Carry On” has a big chorus and equally big hooks mixed with a groovy bass drop, followed by a powerful crescendo. It feels almost epic – except that it’s also just 3:30 in length. “Cherry Valley Cemetery” is structured around a syncopated rhythm with call-and-response vocals before a third part that begins with an air of frustration before growing into a forceful push back at oppression. “Pressure Shift,” right after it, builds on that momentum with angry and distorted vocals that pull from the Kill Rock Stars glory days before heavy buzzsaw guitars cut through it. “Wild Geranium” is an art-rock track with spoken word interjections that’s both disjointed yet somehow beautiful. I’ve described a lot of things in this paragraph because this record is all of these things in one: multidimensional, serious and fun, heavy and melodic, all at once. Hell, they even sneak a trumpet into “Load” without throwing off the balance. You’ll pick up on some Kitten Forever similarities on songs like “Pressure Shift” and “Cherry Valley Cemetery,” but the songs themselves take a new direction throughout this project.
I mentioned radio-friendly earlier, meaning memorable hooks -- not soulless autotune. “The Empire” is driving rock ‘n’ roll with some impressive vocal chops (and direction changes). “Ride” is essentially the title track, with its cathartic “Where do you go to get colossal?” singalong that’s big and punchy. This record has it all if you’re a fan of loud rock ‘n’ roll with independent spirit. I’ll admit it didn’t strike as hard on the first couple of listens, but the closer you pay attention, the bigger and stronger it gets. Dare I say that it sounds, well, colossal?
