Band: BØW
From: Lisbon, Portugal
Their formation story:
(João Coelho, vocals): "BØW started in 2021 through the pandemic in a conversation with Rui Silva (drummer). We didn’t know each other personally but we both wanted to do a punk hardcore band, so I dared Henrique Reis (guitar) to do some straight-to-the-point riffs, I knew he would be up to it. We worked around the riffs and structures and when we had the first songs ready we decided to record the first EP with Sérgio Prata.
"The three of us have been long-time friends, playing in another band for many years, so he took on the bass as well as production and engineering duties. Early this year, Sérgio decided to part ways with the band so our friend Rui Conceição joined us. BØW has its own Ruiniverse now."
Their sound in their own words:
"I would describe it as ferocious yet catchy and most of all structurally straight to the point while trying to bring some freshness into it. It's hardcore punk with infectious riffs, pummeling drums, and unapologetic pissed-off vocals. So if you are into Trash Talk, GEL, SPY, Bad Brains, and Drug Church, you will get our drift."
Latest release info:
"The new EP started being written in 2022, following the same principles as the first release, while we were also playing gigs. We went to record it last year with Sérgio, and it was really fun. We wanted to step up our game. It sounds gnarly, hits hard, and there’s a catchiness to it that was much more explored than on the first EP.
"Lyrically, it’s about stuff that pisses me off, self-responsibility and growth. Mostly it revolves around a critical view of behaviors and dynamics in a group or society, the lack of self-love, and true connections with others.
"These were the first lyrics I wrote after parenthood, and I guess I was in a wakefulness state and wanted to be genuinely honest in the way I would express those ideas and intentions, overall to give the best I could, no excuses. I’m proud of what we achieved and we’re very happy with what came out."
Future plans:
"Working hard while having fun. This month we are doing release parties around the country with bands we love. We have a new batch of songs ready and we’re working on new ones. We plan to release an LP, play as much as possible and tours are in the works."
What other bands from their region should we check out?
"Fortunately, there are a lot of good bands around, talented collectives with their own identity, and original sounds.
"To mention a few: Redemptus, Clericbeast, Manferior, Hetta, Cold Sweat, Take Back, Fear the Lord, Soul of Anubis, Bas Rotten, Systemic Viølence, Besta, Obsoletos, Borf, Pledge, Devil in Me, Dead End, Unexist.exe, All Kingdoms Fall and many others, dig into it."
BØW on social media: Instagram
