Labels: Goembessa
Review by: Andy Malcolm
I have had this tape for a while. It is a good tape, a very good tape. There seems to have been a
mini-revival in the tape format in our scene lately. What with Fuckit tapes and all. Wow
Owls tape is very, very sexily done, with a nice foldout cover and a lyric sheet. I would
rather listen to a tape than a CD at least. Because you can put it on in the car and stuff. Although some people have a CD player in the car, in which case, you don’t give a shit. It just seems more fun when a release is on tape and sounds so well recorded. Anyway.
Wow Owls (silly name, but hey), play garbled vocalled emo/hc that is trying to make me think of the same band that I couldn’t think of when reviewing Dear Tonight. Maybe that band is Hail Mary, or something like that. Wow Owls is way more emo than Hail Mary though. The music is tightly wound and melodic and just simply rocks out making me nod my head / tap my foot in equal measure. They do not relent, they blast, they pound, they groove, they do it in a superb fashion. Many bands would be delighted to have music this good on an actual record, let alone a tape. A cassette. Crikey. I still can’t get over that stupid fact.
So. Yes, good stuff. Very modern sounding and pushing this genre kicking and screaming (but not screamoing) out of the mid 90’s whilst still retaining the necessary elements that make this music a personal obesession. This band lurks with Reds and Tiny Hawks as bands that have come out of nowhere and knocked my socks off of late. Damned impressive. I tip my hat. And press the rewind button. Don’t chew my tape up, motherfucker.