Cologne, Germany continues to be one of the most active hubs for hardcore in Europe, and GLOW are a clear example of why. “It all started when the band Justin and I were in before ended,” Pete tells me over email. “I wrote some demos because I was still hungry to make hardcore, and Justin told me that whatever project I started, he would be part of it.”
From there, the lineup came together naturally—Viv joined, followed by Mitch, someone the band already knew from playing together. “Long story short—new band, old friends,” Pete says. That familiarity carries over into how GLOW writes and operates. Notably, much of the band’s material originates from behind Pete's throne.
“I think what’s a little uncommon, especially for hardcore, is that I wrote most of our tracks as the drummer,” he explains. “That’s why the songs are very groove-focused and keep most of the guitar parts pretty straightforward. There are no egos involved in the songwriting process… I can’t thank my bandmates enough for the trust they give me.”
That trust is evident on GLOW's second EP, Between What’s Torn Apart, a release that follows last year's Incarcerate. “We used the first year of GLOW to figure out what we enjoy playing live and took the time to grow together as a band,” Pete says. “When we started working on the new record, we knew it had to be just as angry and dissonant as our first EP.”
The band kept their foundation of panic chords and shifting tempos but pushed things further, stripping back some of the half-time sections in favor of a more relentless pace. Lyrically, the EP pulls directly from the group’s reaction to the current state of the world. “The world seems cursed right now,” Pete says.
“There are wars all around the globe, and society… is becoming more and more divided.” He points to widening economic gaps and the strain on the working class as central themes. “We’re fighting amongst ourselves just to get through the day under poor wages and an increasingly unaffordable cost of living.”
That perspective comes into sharp focus on “Stupid Man Suit,” a track inspired by Donnie Darko that critiques blind loyalty to corporate systems. “We try to paint a picture of people desperately trying to climb the corporate ladder and defend their bosses… because they dream of becoming one of them someday,” Pete says. “We would rather be fools than wear that stupid man suit.” The message is blunt: “Every billionaire became wealthy through the exploitation of workers… don’t make a clown of yourself by believing you can become one of them just by working harder.”
GLOW’s rise is happening alongside a broader surge in western Germany’s hardcore scene—often referred to as Rhineline Hardcore—and it’s not by accident. “We’re very proud to be a small part of it,” Pete says. “There are so many people putting huge amounts of time, energy, and passion into building and maintaining this scene.”
He points to a wide network of promoters driving that momentum. “Promoters like Tuennes Booking, LLC Shows, Angeschimmelt Youth Crew, Schrebergarten Kollektiv, Side2side Records, Flacore Booking, Salvating Booking and many more are killing it with shows across several areas,” Pete explains. On the label side, there’s a similar level of support: “We’re lucky to have labels like DBNO Records, STTW Records, Collective Memory Records, and Side2side Records helping push things forward.”
But what really makes Rhineline Hardcore work, according to Pete, is the collective nature of it all. “All of these promoters, labels, and bands depend on everyone else in the scene—the people showing up to shows, supporting releases, and keeping hardcore alive,” he says. “In hardcore, we’re all the same.”
That mindset extends to how GLOW approach the band itself. “We think it’s very important not to do things in hardcore just for the approval of others,” Pete says. “We want to encourage people to express themselves without the pressure of doing something wrong or the fear of being seen as less real.”
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