Controlled Collapse, Maximum Impact
Some bands feel “new”. Others arrive fully formed. Crouch belongs firmly to the latter.
The three-piece brings together seasoned heavyweights from Belgium’s experimental hardcore and post-metal underground scene : Wim Coppers (Oathbreaker, Rise And Fall, Living Gate, Wiegedood, etc.) on drums, Jasper Hollevoet (Ventilateur) on bass, and Levy Seynaeve (AmenRa, Wiegedood, Oathbreaker, Living Gate) handling guitars and vocals.
On paper alone, it reads like a supergroup. In practice, it sounds even more volatile.
Their self-titled debut EP, released in 2023, wastes no time with introductions. It’s tense, abrasive, and deliberately claustrophobic — leaning into noise, repetition, and slow-burn heaviness rather than obvious catharsis. Think sludge-metal x post-hardcore = heavy post-metal stripped to the bone, industrial edges, and riffs that feel more like pressure than melody.
Now, Crouch are putting the final touches on their first full-length album, ‘Breaking The Catatonic State’, slated for physical and digital release this March via the newly launched label Heimlich Manoeuvres (Siem Reap). If the EP hinted at a band testing the walls, the album promises to fully break through them.
For those who like their heaviness raw, hypnotic, and uncompromising – somewhere between AmenRa, Cynic, Neurosis, Thou or Rosetta – Crouch is one to watch closely.
