“Swimming” by Crast

At times brutally heavy while in others more melodic than vicious, there’s no telling where Crast are going to take us around every twist and turn in their new single and music video “Swimming.” Equal parts punk, indie rock, dream pop, post-hardcore and moderate alternative metal, “Swimming” is a track that shows us just how much versatility this band has going for them, and if you’re at all familiar with the current state of the American underground’s rock n’ roll pulse, you’re more than aware of just how few groups are able to claim as much right now. 

There are subtle complexities to most every element in this song and its music video, starting with the arrangement of the guitar and the bass. The strings do a lot of dueling for dominance over the rest of the mix, but in the end, the percussion and the vocal are the most important components of communication we’re ever afforded the opportunity to connect with.

Crast go out of their way to make sure that there isn’t a single stitch of unutilized space in “Swimming,” and while this level of efficiency does give the underlying beat more of a black and white feel than it does anything colorful, the experimental tone of the other parts here require as much. 

Indie rock hasn’t been getting the critical love it’s been worthy of in 2020, but that’s going to change if this band has anything to do about it, and they demonstrate their message brilliantly in “Swimming.” Crast are difficult to describe and even harder to keep track of on the aesthetical map – even within the context of a mere single and its music video – but in this chapter of history, that might do a lot more to help their credibility with millennial audiences than hurt it. 

Zachary Rush