On The Verge

The Growlers

Costa Mesa, Calif.
Riding the Wave of Bent Sound
www.thegrowlers.com

Formed in 2005, The Growlers’ brand of surf rock is a wavy beach kaleidoscope of country, skiffle, blues and psychedelic. “If it’s beach goth or whatever you want to call it—you can’t really do it in Nebraska,” says singer Brooks Neilsen referring to California’s influence on the quintet. The band’s latest EP, Hot Tropics, is an ambling, drunken shot of The Growlers signature “bent sound,” a term coined by surfer buddy Alex Knost. Catalyzed in the live setting by the croon and vamp of Neilsen, the band plays short, but flowing sets of their wavy surf tunes. While they have recently found themselves associated with psych-rock bands—they travel the country in an own reclaimed school bus—the term is not something they’re quite comfortable with. “We’re using reverb and delay, getting experimental with recording, so a lot of it comes out psychedelic sounding,” Neilsen says. “But when you team us up with a bunch of psychedelic bands, I feel so funny. We’re not over-the-top trippy,” Neilsen says. The Growlers are sticking to simpler, more country-tinged music for their eccentric sound. “When we started out, I was into making weird music—and I still am—so I’m going to keep doing that.”