Featuring drummer Wim Coppers, bassist Jasper Hollevoet, and vocalist and guitarist Levy Seynaeve, each bringing in a flurry of extensive experience from previous musical endeavours, Crouch is a relatively new band that is already making waves in the underground scene. After the release of their self-titled EP back in 2023, the Belgium power trio have now conjured their first full-length record, Breaking The Catatonic State, which marks a clear departure from the band’s earlier sound, moving away from familiar sludgy rhythms to embrace a more complex and dynamic direction. “Breaking with the 4/4 heartbeat rhythm we’re all so comforted by, even before we’re born, is at the center of the musical philosophy of this record,” explains the band. “Hooks and sharp corners at every turn are what keeps us on our toes as musicians and what ultimately drives us to write and play music and has led us to drop any preconceived notion of what the follow-up to our EP should sound like, and any expectation of being well received with it”.
Both in lyrics and sound, the record aims to get to the core of things. “This record is the musical and lyrical embodiment of its title,” the band notes. “Crouch no longer carries the same face it had at its conception and we’ve fully embraced what we ourselves find thrilling in making music”. The evolution brings a new level of directness. “For the first time in my life I’ve found the words to address things without feeling the need to protect the clue by a wall of metaphors and adjectives,” shares Levy Seynaeve. “To quote a famous Parisian: ‘This is for us, this is not for you’”. In stripping away the filters, Crouch delivers an album that is intimate, unflinching, and deeply resonant.
Breaking The Catatonic State will be released on March 20th via Heimlich Manoeuvres. Pre-orders are now available here.
Photo credit: Geert Braekers
