*Please note this article was written before the allegations and shut down of Burger Records. This article was written in earnest, but some contents of this article are no longer in line with my opinion.
It’s February 14th….why does this feel like it’s supposed to be a significant day? Oh yeah! It’s a Friday! Which means I have a special gift from my black heart to yours, sent with a rose. New Music Flavor for your ears this week is from a band near and dear to my heart, The Growlers.
As I sit in the Burbank airport screaming at my laptop and turning into a soulless zombie among the masses, nothing seems more appropriate than highlighting “Love Test”. Before ever considering moving to the whimsical land of Los Angeles, Brooks Nielsen and the rest of his growlin’ crew warned me about the loveless cloud I would inevitably be living in. Luckily, my black heart and stone walls higher than the Great Wall of China were already prepared to take on this journey alone.
I don’t know how you’ll find love in LA, they don’t make them like they do in the country // The city moves too fast to appreciate all the time it takes for sweet loving
If you’ve spent any time at all in this city, this will hit hard and true. I am genuinely shocked when I meet a solid couple in this godforsaken city – HOW DID YOU FIND EACH OTHER? HOW DID YOU BREAK THROUGH THIS CITY’S B@LL$H!T AND OPEN UP YOUR HEART TO SOMEONE? Whatever, as I said I’m at the airport, headed to a party in Seattle so appropriately titled “We are all going to die alone”. I’m ready for it.
I’m here to talk about music right? Not here to crush your soul with my loveless cynicism? Let’s switch gears a bit then. The Growlers are by no means a new act, and “Love Test”, from one of my favorite albums Chinese Fountain, was released in 2014. They have put out a lot of great music since then, including Natural Affair, released this last October. Some Classy Cassie highlights off this album include “Pulp of Youth” and “Die and Live Forever”, but I suggest you listen to the album in full and decide for yourself.
I first saw them live at Lagunitas in June 2016 at their iconic outdoor LaguMiniAmphitheaterette, which was a great show because it was less about the production and more about the true raspy grit of Brooks Nielsen that transforms your soul into an indie-disco-funk jam session. On the flip side, they were the first artist I saw perform at the Hollywood Palladium during their annual Beach Goth event. Needless to say, that was also DOPE AF getting to celebrate their music with thousands of other festive fans. Luckily for us all, they bring this back around every year. If you’re in the Los Angeles area, they still have tickets available for March 25th and 26th at the City National Grove of Anaheim.
So in conclusion, don’t cry because you’re single. Cry because love doesn’t exist and you’re going to die alone. (But at least you had some good tunes a long the way, right?) ** laughs hysterically in the dark corner listening to Natural Affair waiting for candy to go on sale tomorrow**
