Crawl - No Way Out
Photo by Victoria Fischer
Release Date: June 27, 2025
Label: THC: Music / Virgin Music Group
Genre: Death Metal / Industrial Metal
For fans of industrial-infused death metal, the name CRAWL carries the weight of underground legacy. Emerging from Green Bay, Wisconsin’s midwestern scene in the late ‘80s—first as Nothing Sacred, then Bleed, and finally as Crawl—the band carved out a reputation for fusing brutal, groove-driven riffing with mechanical textures and growling intensity.
Their early work, including the 1993 EP Womb and the 1995 full-length Earth, captured the experimental spirit of the era, earning them comparisons to genre innovators like Godflesh, Fear Factory, and Pitch Shifter. After 1997’s Construct, Destroy, Rebuild—a stripped-down yet intense follow-up—Crawl faded into an indefinite hiatus, leaving fans with a small but potent discography and a lingering “what if?”
Nearly thirty years later, No Way Out answers that question with a vengeance.
The Long Road Back
The seeds of this return were planted in 2019 when Crawl reunited for the Combat/EMP reissue of Womb, playing a record-release show that sparked a creative resurgence. But reviving a band after two decades isn’t simple.
Writing began in earnest just months before the COVID-19 pandemic brought the world—and their process—to a halt. Forced into isolation, the band worked separately, slowly piecing together twelve new songs that would mark their first full-length album in three decades. Recording wrapped in mid-2021, but technical setbacks, scheduling conflicts, and a last-minute album art crisis delayed its release until 2025.
The result of this painstaking process is an album that feels forged in tension and time—a reflection of Crawl’s past, present, and enduring will to create.
The Sound of No Compromise
No Way Out wastes no time establishing its tone. “Thoughts of a Liar” erupts with grinding dissonance and guttural vocals, setting the stage for an experience that is equal parts visceral and mechanical.
Tracks like “Steal to Create” and “Parasite” are built around jagged, downtuned riffs and percussive precision, while “Your Suffering” leans into slower, more atmospheric territory before detonating into a wall of industrial chaos. “Fortress” and “Silence Is Violence” recall the heavy groove of Crawl’s Earth era, yet feel sharpened for a 2025 audience.
Production, handled by guitarist Jason DeJardin at Grave Error Renderings, balances clarity with rawness—keeping the metallic bite intact while preserving the grimy textures that made Crawl stand apart from their peers.
Legacy Reclaimed
Art/Design by Thom Hazaert
Listening to No Way Out, one hears echoes of the early ‘90s Midwest scene—Milwaukee Metal Fest, industrial experimentation, and the grim determination of a band competing in a grunge-dominated era. Yet, Crawl sound as fresh and driven as ever, refusing to rely on nostalgia alone.
Instead of trying to relive its past, the band is reclaiming its identity, proving that its approach to industrial-death metal remains cutting-edge.
Final Verdict
No Way Out is more than a comeback album—it’s a triumph of persistence, craft, and uncompromising heaviness. It bridges the gap between the industrial-metal underground of the 1990s and the genre’s darker, more extreme future.
For longtime fans, it’s a long-awaited reward. For newcomers, it’s a brutal invitation to discover why Crawl was—and still is—one of the Midwest’s most important cult acts.
Rating: 8.7/10 – A punishing, atmospheric, and long-overdue return that proves Crawl never truly went away.
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Courtesy of The Dark Channel PR
