With alternative rock now sitting comfortably in the mainstream (oh, the irony) and indie music often feeling like it’s been reduced from a rebellious scream to a polite smile, Razor Burn’s latest single, “Avow”, is a timely reminder that rock once had a sharper set of teeth. This is no mere throwback in the lazy, nostalgic sense—it’s not a museum piece dusted off for modern consumption—but it does hum with the same restless spirit that made the 90s such a fertile time for the genre.
Back when alternative and underground weren’t marketing labels but genuine battle cries, and when a band’s grit was measured in sweat and distortion rather than streaming metrics, “Avow” feels like it has soaked up that ethos—loud, unvarnished, unapologetic—added a touch of brooding punk spirit, and set it loose in the here and now, ready to prove to anyone still paying attention that rock still has a pulse.
“Razor Burn” takes its time to work its magic, certainly making its presence felt right from the word go, but never merely playing the clichéd “volume and velocity” card. No, this is subtler than that, not that there is anything sonically subtle here, but it is a song that you have to spend time with to get the full reward. Its charms are not obvious, not to begin with, but once they have you in their spell, “Avow” is a song that you will find yourself returning to time and time again.
It’s big, but it is clever too…something that rock music needs more of. A lot more of.
