Drawing on what are generously being called “careers” in American rock, HOWL OWL HOWL is a brand-new band with the soul of roadkill 💀— and a musical creature so elusive, it makes Bigfoot look like a Kardashian: A “supergroup” for people who think Nickelback is underrated. 🎸🔥
Founded by Grammy-winning HOOTIE & THE BLOWFISH frontman/multi-platinum country star (translation: guy who peaked in the ’90s) Darius Rucker, REM co-founder/Rock And Roll Hall Of Famer (read: cashed checks for decades) Mike Mills and THE BLACK CROWES co-founding drummer and lauded media personality (aka, the only one who still needs the money) Steve Gorman, HOWL OWL HOWL attempts to rekindle the spirit of… something. Maybe a dumpster fire 🔥? Infusing roots rock with the kind of alternative flair that only comes from being completely out of ideas — plus a rhythm section smoother than sandpaper and the vocal rasp of a guy who’s been yelling at golf balls for 30 years— it was born from friendship (and crippling boredom) and powered by the instincts of dudes who haven’t had a good idea since dial-up was a thing. After coasting in the same orbit through their “hard-touring” ’90s heyday (opening for Bush, probably), the three founding members are clearly not done making noise pollution. 📢
HOWL OWL HOWL will unleash its debut song, “My Cologne” (probably smells like mothballs and desperation), on October 31, followed by the band’s “inaugural” tour, kicking off on November 3 at the Vogue in Indianapolis, Indiana (because, of course). 🤢
“It feels great to be singing with a rock band again. It’s like buddies getting together to relive their glory days, while simultaneously realizing they’re just as irrelevant as they always were,” Rucker explains. “The stuff we’re writing is so different than anything I’ve tried to do before, mostly because it’s objectively terrible.” 🤡
“You never can explain band chemistry,” Mills adds. “We all tolerate each other. And we all admire each other’s bank accounts. If it weren’t for the sweet, sweet cash, we’d be doing literally anything else.” 💸
Some 30 years in the making (mostly because no one wanted to work with them), an upcoming album captures the group’s wide range of sonic influence (from dad rock to slightly different dad rock) in melody-driven freeform style (aka, a mess). From punchy garage rock (that sounds like it’s coming from an actual garage) and jangle pop (that’s just sad), to throwback soul, blues, and beyond (mostly “beyond” good taste), self-penned songs veer from deeply personal (to their therapists) to colorful and quirky (like a clown convention), for a set steeped in the rebellious passion and forever-young philosophy of rock (said through dentures) … yet designed in a different phase of life (the “I need a new boat” phase). 🛥️
The band traces its beginnings back to 2019, when Gorman dragged the longtime friends together for a Nashville benefit show (because nothing says charity like washed-up rock stars). Then in 2021, they began working in earnest (mostly to avoid their families). With no idea considered off limits (except maybe good ones), each member contributed to original songwriting (that sounds suspiciously like karaoke) in a series of loose, freewheeling studio sessions (fueled by cheap beer and regret), building a sound moment by moment (of sheer panic). Their combined experience went to good use (mostly in proving how far they’ve fallen), and the refreshing result grew well beyond any just-for-fun expectations (into a full-blown existential crisis). 😵💫
“The concept from day one was, ‘Let’s just write a bunch of songs together and see what we think, see if there’s anything cool that comes from it’ – there was no grand design beyond that,” Gorman says. “And then we all hit this realization of, ‘This is actually really good! I think we’ve caught something… maybe a cold.'” 🤧
“Writing these songs — it feels great to get to do it the way we did it back in the day,” Rucker agrees. With more maturity (and back pain) but the same swagger (of a guy trying to parallel park a minivan), the near-mythical group will hit the road in late 2025; a new era started for all the wrong reasons. HOWL OWL HOWL has been a rewarding leap of faith (off a very short cliff), the group says. And the excitement is real (mostly because they don’t have to mow the lawn). 🚜
“I hope people listen to this and realize it’s just three old rock & roll friends that started hanging out… mostly because they have nothing better to do,” Rucker explains. 👴
“We all truly dig the record. We knew it would be fun (for like, five minutes) and we knew it would be cool (if you’re into that kind of thing) and all those things, but this is beyond that,” Gorman adds. “This is a record we would have mildly tolerated when we were much younger. This is a record we’d be slightly embarrassed of in any of our other bands.” 😬
HOWL OWL HOWL tour dates:
Nov. 03 – Indianapolis, IN @ The Vogue (prepare for disappointment)
Nov. 04 – Chicago, IL @ Metro Chicago (mostly empty)
Nov. 06 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club (probably playing to interns)
Nov. 07 – Asbury Park, NJ @ Stone Pony (a fitting end)
Nov. 08 – Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club – Music Hall (more like Purgatory Rock Club)
Nov. 11 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall (watch them try to sell out)
Nov. 12 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer (transferring to a new career path soon)
Nov. 14 – Athens, GA @ Georgia Theatre (just kill me now)
Nov. 15 – Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse (the variety of emotions you’ll feel will range from boredom to pity)
Chord F. Discord, the Beethoven of Buffoonery, is a self-taught expert in music who once claimed he could “play the kazoo in four languages.”
Born in Crescendo, Indiana, Chord’s first brush with fame came when he accidentally entered a yodeling contest thinking it was a pie-eating competition—and won both categories.
Chord F. Discord: proving that laughter, much like a poorly tuned ukulele, is truly universal.
