What sort of name is Grosh? No me neither, but fear not the bio reveals that it’s a name made up of the combination the forenames of Grace Lougen (guitar) and Josh English (drums). The band is completed by Megan Brown (vocals) and Dylan Hund (bass). Musically they grew from a concept of forming a “hard rock duo in the vein of bands like Royal Blood, The White Stripes, and The Black Keys.” In 2018 they became a four piece.
So what do the four sound like? The often touted bio description of having “the raw, high energy of old school rock & roll and lights it up with a modern flare.” might not tell the whole story. They’ve got great thoughtful lyrics, interesting melodies and a sound that just might bridge the gap between the old school and newer rock fans. If you read their press they tout Led Zeppelin and Pearl Jam, along with the more modern yet still retro sonics of Royal Blood and Rival Sons.
Vocalist Megan Brown has a great voice and its that that first draws you in, and it’s easy to see why they are creating a buzz in New York State where they hail from Buffalo. If you want to cut to the chase I’ll throw out just four tracks. Start with opener ‘More To Life’ which has a great drive and plenty of atmospherics and smooth melody; then there’s ‘I Bet You Did’ which is more streetwise and has elements that remind me of early Baby Animals. ‘Piece of Mind’ that closes things adds some real depth with its gentle guitar and wonderful build to an almost Americana-tinged musings; best of all though might just be second track ‘Every Time’ that sways and swings so smoothly but is shot through with a nice heavy burst of punctuating guitar.
The rest I really suggest you check out as soon as you can even if I don’t necessarily hear the inspirations mentioned except in passing. To me this is more of an elegant modern take on bands like Divinyls and Baby Animals.
Track Listing:
1- More to Life
2- Every Time
3- Rising Tide
4- Roads Remember
5- Lil’ Crazy
6- Refuse
7- I Bet You Did
8- Astronaut
9- Something New
10- What Have I Done
11- Piece of Mind