SWOLL’S NEW SINGLE “SCAR” IS ROWDY, DISSONANT POST-PUNK AND INDIE ROCK

It just seems like some words and lyrics are thrown out there, and there's a lot of angst and unrest present in “Scar.” Referring to the bio of Baltimore musician Matt Dowling, there’s a rich backstory, intelligent thinking, and introspection regarding this song as well as his upcoming album, ‘Avoid Detach,’ due out this Fall on September 26th.

Swoll, who is now a fleshed-out band that also features multi-instrumentalist Erik Sleight on drums and Zak Forrest on lighting design, is paying a tribute to Puff Pieces (a now-defunct Washington band and the descendant project of Antelope). The single and the album take their cues from the social commentary delivered on their 2016 LP, ‘Bland in D.C..’. Their two lyrics, which are also their song titles, are 'Pointless People' and 'Women and Men with Guns’ in “Scar.”

There has been much rumination on the “Avoid Detach” concept in modern life, both about how it relates to the personal, psychological, and social, and how technology plays a significant part in it.

The eclectic, low-budget video shows the band performing with artsy, weird, offbeat colors and effects in the strange background montage.

“Scar” sounds disjointed and fragmented, with Dowling’s monotone, pissed-off voice yelling/screaming. That’s what stays with the listener and reverberates in their minds afterward, repeated plays. “Scar” leaves an unforgettable mark on the human psyche.