When I think of skate punk the first thing that comes to mind is California. With great skate punk bands like NoFX, Pennywise, Lagwagon, and The Descendents all coming from California as well as leading the pack in the world of Skate Punk, you’d never expect an outsider to lay territory in the California-based genre. I thought the same thing too, up until I saw a band called Gnarwolves from Brighton, England open up for The Wonder Years.
I’ve always been a fan of Skate-Punk, it’s fast, fun and typically doesn’t mean much outside of having a good time. Gnarwolves fall right into the genre swimmingly, writing songs about late nights with friends, drinking to good times and the all important “break-up song”. With Skate-Punk having such few newcomers in recent years, it’s refreshing to find a band doing something different. Gnarwolves have taken a genre that has established it’s basic foundations since the late 80s and given it their own spin.
Coming off of their first US tour, I find it crazy how such a diverse and different band from all of the other punk around these days, haven’t yet made a mark on the American scene. I truly hope that this tour has done them well in terms of the Western market, because they absolutely deserve to constantly touring America. For, not only is their song writing good, but their live show is equal to, if not better than their recordings. Finding a good live band is so hard, especially in a genre centered around energy, rather than technique and talent, yet Gnarwolves find a meaningful balance in the two. They manage to beautifully pack musical talent with such high energy, that keeps the crowd engaged.
Gnarwolves have set the standard for what Skate-Punk should be these days, and do so in such a fashion that can only be praised. Their genre had seen it’s better days and all, but died out in recent years, but they’ve made the difference and given Skate-Punk a second chance that it deserves. They’ve set themselves apart by means of genre, but the way the crowd roared for them and the energy found all throughout their short set should only be a sign that they have more to be seen. For a foreign band, at the smaller level that they are, Gnarwolves most definitely deserve more praise for their craft and should absolutely be headlining all of the big summer tours found in the American punk world.
