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This article is about the American musical trio. For the 2015 Daisy Ridley film, see Scrawl (film). For the 2001 album, see Scrawl (album).

Scrawl
Also known asSkull (1985)
OriginColumbus, Ohio, U.S.
Genres
Years active
  • 1985–present
Labels
MembersMarcy Mays
Sue Harshe
Jovan Karcic
Past membersCarla Sanseri
Carolyn O'Leary
Dana Marshall

Scrawl is an American indie rock band. The band were formed in Columbus, Ohio in 1985 by guitarist and vocalist Marcy Mays, bassist and backing vocalist Sue Harshe and drummer Carolyn O'Leary, from the ashes of Mays' previous band Skull; they adopted their current name after playing their first show together. The band has been described as a precusor to riot grrrl, though they do not consider themselves part of the movement.

In 1987, Scrawl released its debut album Plus, Also Too, which earned the band a deal with Rough Trade Records. The band released two albums with the label, He's Drunk (1988) and Smallmouth (1990), before parting ways with the label. O'Leary left the band in 1992 and was replaced by Dana Marshall, who made his recording debut on Velvet Hammer (1993). The band moved to the major label Elektra Records for two albums, Travel On, Rider (1996) and Nature Film (1998), which were both underpromoted. Although they have not released any new material since Nature Film, Scrawl have continued to tour with drummer Jovan Karcic, who joined in 2007.

History

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Formation and Rough Trade Records (1985–1990)

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Guitarist and vocalist Marcy Mays and bassist and backing vocalist Sue Harshe first met each other in 1984 whilst the latter visiting her boyfriend in Athens, Ohio, and quickly became friends.[1][2] Both members had past experience playing in hardcore bands; at the time of meeting, Mays was in a band called Skull with bassist Jane Young and drummer Carla Sanseri, and Harshe in No Amerika! According to Harshe, they did not contribute to their bands' songwriting as they felt intimidated.[2] When Mays relocated to Columbus in early 1985, she and Harshe both agreed they would write songs and be "masters of [their] own domain".[1][3] Around this time, Skull were offered an opening slot for the Butthole Surfers by show promoter and School Kids and No Other Records owner Curt Scheiber.[4] Young was not interested, and Harshe subsequently joined the band as her replacement.[3] Prior to a show opening for the Meat Puppets in August 1985,[5] Skull changed its name to Scrawl and Sanseri was replaced by Carolyn O'Leary.[3][6] According to Harshe, the band chose Scrawl because they thought that Skull "sound[ed] too heavy metal", and because it rhymed with their former name.[3] The band developed a following,[7][8] and embarked on its first tour in 1986, performing in the cities of Lexington, Kentucky, Tallahassee and Jackson, Mississippi.[3] Mays said that Scrawl did not expect themselves to be long-lived, telling the Chicago Tribune in 1990; "Everything for the next nine months [after the Meat Puppets show] was, 'Let's just do one more gig'. We never thought we'd be together one more month."[9]

With the help of their friends, Scrawl recorded its debut album Plus Also Too in September 1986,[10][5] for less than $500.[7] The album was released through Scheiber's No Other Records label in May 1987, to positive reviews and media response.[6][11] After Robert Christgau gave the album a favourable review in his "Consumer Guide" for The Village Voice, Scrawl received offers from Homestead, Twin/Tone and Rough Trade Records.[12] Following a performance for all three labels at CBGB in New York City—which Mays later recalled as "one of the worst" the band played—Scrawl signed to Rough Trade in the spring of 1988.[13][14] The band then recorded their second album, He's Drunk, at Paisely Park Studios in Minneapolis.[15] Released in October 1988,[10][7] the album had sold 4,000 copies by 1990.[16] Following its release, Scrawl toured with Firehose;[8] they continued to tour the United States in support of the album until March 1989.[10] After a hiatus due to O'Leary breaking her arm, Scrawl recorded their third album Smallmouth with producer Gary Smith in November 1989.[5][10] Following the album's release in February 1990, Scrawl embarked on a month-long tour of the United States before touring Europe for four weeks in May of that year.[10] Following abortive negotations with the label over their fourth album and the release of a four-song promotional extended play of covers recorded by Steve Albini,[17][11] Scrawl parted ways with Rough Trade in the fall of 1990.[6] The following year, the label declared bankruptcy, and Scrawl's back catalog subsequently went out of print.[6] The band were forced to buy back their master tapes at public auction.[18][19][17]

Simple Machines and Velvet Hammer (1991–1995)

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In January and April 1991, the band recorded an extended play with Steve Albini, Bloodsucker.[5] It was released on the Feel Good All Over Records. According to Jason Ankey of AllMusic, the EP "is clearly informed by the group's troubled experiences in the music business"; the liner notes, in regards to its cover artwork, state that "any resemblance to music industry executives is purely coincidental."[20] Released in October 1991,[5] the EP quickly sold out of its first pressing of 2,000 copies.[19] Although it suffered from poor distribution,[6] Bloodsucker received strong reviews,[11] and was ranked ninth on the 1991 Pazz & Jop poll for extended plays, tying with releases from Dinosaur Jr. and Prisonshake.[21] Around the time of its release, the band played shows with the Afghan Whigs and My Bloody Valentine.[8]

In May 1992, O'Leary left Scrawl.[11] The following month, the band released the 7" single "Misery (Someone Is Winning) / Just Plain Bad",[8] before embarking on the "Foxcore, My Ass" tour as an acoustic duo.[6] By the end of 1992, the band had recruited Dana Marshall as their new drummer and signed with Simple Machines Records and Southern Records (for the UK).[8] Harshe said that the band were no long worried about working with men again as they felt they had become better songwriters and performers.[18] In January 1993, Scrawl worked with Albini again for the recording of Velvet Hammer,[8] which was released in November 1993.[17] In the fall of 1994, the band embarked on a tour of Europe and performed at the Reading Festival in the United Kingdom.[22]

Elektra Records (1996–1999)

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In 1996,[1] Scrawl were signed to Elektra Records by A&R rep Terry Tolkin.[23] The band released its major label debut, Travel On Rider, in August 1996.[24] The band toured the Northeastern US in October,[24] prior to a supporting tour with Wilco in 1997.[citation needed] For their sixth album, Nature Film , Scrawl re-recorded six of their Rough Trade-era songs and a cover of Public Image Ltd's "Public Image", alongside six new songs.[25] Harshe said that the band wanted to re-record their old songs as they had changed and "become more fluid live" over the years, and because "the thought of giving [Elektra] 12 new songs seemed really depressing to us" due to the label's lacklustre promotion of Travel On, Rider.[25] Mays later said that the band "were basically saying 'fuck em' by not giving [the label] anything new".[26] The album was released in May 1998,[27] and was supported by a tour supporting Mike Watt.[25][28] Six weeks after its release, Elektra informed Scrawl via fax that they had dropped the band from its roster. In response, Scrawl launched a mailing campaign with its supporters and more than 250 people on its mailing list to send a postcard to label head Sylvia Rhone, featuring a copy of the fax from Elektra on one side and the following message for a sender to tick off and sign on the other:[29]

Elektra has dropped Scrawl. I am: 1) Disgusted; 2) Relieved; 3) Out of the Closet; 4) Other

In an 1998 interview with CMJ New Music Report, Harshe said that they were not suprised about being dropped from Elektra due to the minimal support for both Travel On, Rider and Nature Film, claiming that the label "never sent out anything other than advance CDs" and that both releases had sold less copies than their independent albums, although she did not feel bitter towards them.[30] As of August 1998, the former had sold 2,115 copies, whilst the latter had sold only 956 copies.[30] David Martin of the Cleveland Scene associated Scrawl with the "Columbus Curse" of bands from the city that were "wooed, signed, and tossed aside like chew toys by major labels", including Royal Crescent Mob, the Toll and Watershed.[1] A planned tour of the west coast of the United States with the Spinanes, due to commence in October 1998,[30] was cancelled after Mays broke her collarbone, which also hindered the band's plans to work on new material.[25][31] The band resumed touring in 1999.[31]

Subsequent activities (2000–present)

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On March 16, 2000, Scrawl played their final show with Dana Marshall, who relocated to Sweden thereafter.[32] In early 2001, Scrawl played a few shows as a duo, with Mays and Harshe handling keyboards in the absence of a drummer.[33][34][35] In 2007, Scrawl reunited to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Little Brother club in Columbus, with Jovan Karcic, formerly the guitarist of fellow Columbus band Gaunt, joining as their new drummer.[36] That same year, Harshe formed a new band, Fort Shame.[37] The band has continuted to tour and perform since then.

In a 2023 interview with Matter News, Mays revealed that Scrawl had begun producing new instrumentals together since the summer with the intention of finally releasing a new album, though said they have no deadlines.[38] In 2024, the band performed at DromFest '24 in Catskill, New York.[39][40][41]

Musical style and influences

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Scrawl have been described as indie rock[42][43] and post-punk.[1][44] The band's first two albums, Plus, Also, Too and He's Drunk, were described as indie pop.[43][6] Gregory McGovern of Hot Press described the band's style as "minimalist rock ‘n’ roll".[18] The band's musical influences include Cheap Trick,[45][46] Paula Abdul,[46] Head East, Judas Priest,[45] the Meat Puppets,[9] the Roches and Wire.[47] In an 1995 interview with The Michigan Daily, Harshe highlighted Mays' musical background in country and western music and her own interest in "a lot of good '70s pop" music as elements she thought came through in Scrawl's music.[48]

Legacy

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According to Jason Ankey of AllMusic, Scrawl "carved out their own tough-minded yet feminine niche within the underground community" prior to the riot grrrl movement and subsequent "widespread emergence of female artists in the male-dominated world of indie rock".[6] In 1992, Cathy Hainer of USA Today wrote that the band "have been called 'the spiritual grandmothers' of the girl-grunge movement",[46] whilst in 1993, Caroline Sullivan of The Guardian called them the "founding mothers" of the riot grrrl movement.[49] In a 2009 listicle covering the "100 Greatest Bands You've (Probably) Never Heard" for Spin, Chuck Eddy described Scrawl as "ahead of its time" and "the lone antidote to guitar-rock Guyville" in the late 1980s before the appearence of riot grrrl.[50] In The Encyclopedia of Popular Music, Colin Larkin wrote that although Scrawl were "deeply suspicious" of their associations with riot grrrl by a "trend-obsessed media"—as suggested by their 1992 "Foxcore, My Ass" tour—"many of the musicians involved in the movement openly acknowledged their debt to the group's late 80's recordings."[8] Kathleen Hanna cited Scrawl as an influence on her music,[51] whilst Tsumani guitarist Jenny Toomey called them an "enormous influence on what we did and how we did it."[52]

In an 1993 interview with Hot Press, Harshe said of riot grrrl: "I think that [it] is good for young women. We [Scrawl] certainly don’t really have an alignment with them. Partly because we are older and we started out a long time ago. And so it really doesn’t hold anything for us."[53] In an 1999 interview with the Cleveland Scene, she called the band's assocation to movement "very bizarre" and "a joke".[1] In a 2014 interview, Mays said: "There was nothing intentionally feminist about [Scrawl's] music, but we were leading feminist lives by doing what we wanted to do and not really paying attention to what people wanted us to do. And that’s definitely reflected in the music."[26]

Band members

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Timeline

Discography

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Studio albums

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List of studio albums, with selected details
Title Album details
Plus, Also, Too
  • Released: May 1987[17]
  • Label: No Other
  • Format: LP
He's Drunk
  • Released: October 1988[7][10]
  • Label: Rough Trade
  • Format: CS, LP
Smallmouth
  • Released: February 1990[10]
  • Label: Rough Trade
  • Format: CD, CS, LP
Velvet Hammer
  • Released: November 1993[17]
  • Label: Simple Machines
  • Format: CD, CS, LP
Travel On, Rider
  • Released: August 20, 1996[24]
  • Label: Elektra
  • Format: CD, CS, LP
Nature Film
  • Released: May 19, 1998[27]
  • Label: Elektra
  • Format: CD, CS

Compilation albums

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List of compilation albums, with selected details
Title Split details
He's Drunk/Plus, Also, Too
  • Released: 1989
  • Label: Rough Trade
  • Format: CD

Extended plays

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List of extended plays, with selected details
Title Split details
Bloodsucker
  • Released: October 1991[5]
  • Label: Feel Good All Over
  • Format: CD, CS, LP

Split releases

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List of split releases, with selected details
Title Split details
January / Working Holiday

(Scrawl and Versus)

  • Released: March 1993[17]
  • Label: Simple Machines
  • Format: 7-inch
I'm Going Out Of My Way / Breaker Breaker

(Stereolab and Scrawl)

  • Released: 1994
  • Label: Radiopaque
  • Format: 7-inch

Singles

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List of singles
Title Year Album
"Misery (Someone is Winning) / Just Plain Bad"[5] 1992 Non-album single
"Your Mother Wants to Know"[5] 1993 Velvet Hammer
"Good Under Pressure"[5][54] 1995 Travel On, Rider

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Martin, David W. (February 25, 1999). "Reluctant Godmothers". Cleveland Scene. Retrieved October 3, 2024.
  2. ^ a b Hurachulla 2016, pp. 334–335.
  3. ^ a b c d e Hurachulla 2016, p. 335.
  4. ^ Hurachulla 2016, pp. 335–336.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i Anon. (n.d.). "Scrawl". Simple Machines Records. Archived from the original on February 19, 2001. Retrieved November 28, 2024.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Ankey, Jason (n.d.). "Scrawl Songs, Albums, Reviews, Bio & More". AllMusic. Archived from the original on February 11, 2025. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  7. ^ a b c d MacInnis 1989.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g Larkin 2006.
  9. ^ a b Helm 1990.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g Myers 1989.
  11. ^ a b c d Larkin 2006, p. 315.
  12. ^ Hurachulla 2016, p. 336.
  13. ^ Larkin 2006 reports the date of Scrawl's signing to Rough Trade as March 1988, whilst Myers 1989 reports it as May 1988.
  14. ^ DeVille, Chris (October 23, 2012). "Rewind: Marcy Mays of Scrawl". Columbus Alive. Archived from the original on May 19, 2022. Retrieved November 28, 2024. We had 20 minutes, and I broke two strings. [...] we ended up getting a record deal with Rough Trade from that show. But it was horrible. It was the longest 20 minutes of my life.
  15. ^ Holley 1988.
  16. ^ Madam X 1990, p. 69.
  17. ^ a b c d e f Strong 1999.
  18. ^ a b c McGovern, Gerry (1993). "The Unforgettable 5". Hot Press. Archived from the original on December 2, 2024. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  19. ^ a b Thompson 1993, p. 66.
  20. ^ Bloodsucker - Scrawl | Album | AllMusic, retrieved November 28, 2024
  21. ^ "Robert Christgau: Pazz & Jop 1991: Critics Poll". The Village Voice. March 2, 1992. Archived from the original on June 27, 2002. Retrieved November 28, 2024 – via robertchristgau.com.
  22. ^ Simpson, Dave (September 3, 1994). "Reading Festival, Melody Maker Stage". Melody Maker. Archived from the original on February 12, 2025. Retrieved February 14, 2025 – via Rock's Back Pages.
  23. ^ Knopper, Steve (January 25, 2022). "Terry Tolkin, Who Championed Alt-Rock at Elektra, Dies at 62". Billboard. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  24. ^ a b c Reece 1996.
  25. ^ a b c d Rosenheim, David (1998). "An Interview with Scrawl's Sue Harshe". Inkblot Magazine. Archived from the original on April 13, 2001. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  26. ^ a b 614NOW Staff (January 1, 2014). "Marcy Mays". 614Now. Archived from the original on February 9, 2025. Retrieved December 2, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  27. ^ a b Kellman, Andy (n.d.). "Nature Film - Scrawl | Album". AllMusic. Archived from the original on December 25, 2023. Retrieved December 1, 2024.
  28. ^ Malsey 1998.
  29. ^ CMJ 1998, pp. 3, 67.
  30. ^ a b c CMJ 1998, p. 67.
  31. ^ a b Meyer, Bill (February 11, 1999). "Scrawl". Chicago Reader. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  32. ^ Schieber 2000.
  33. ^ Niesel, Jeff (January 4, 2001). "Scrawl". Cleveland Scene. Archived from the original on January 23, 2025. Retrieved November 28, 2024.
  34. ^ "Scrawl". web.archive.org. July 21, 2001. Archived from the original on July 21, 2001. Retrieved November 28, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  35. ^ "Scrawl". web.archive.org. April 2, 2001. Archived from the original on April 2, 2001. Retrieved November 28, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  36. ^ Writer, Staff (February 28, 2007). "Scrawl to reunite". Columbus Monthly. Archived from the original on May 20, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  37. ^ Joy, Kevin (November 15, 2012). "Meet the Band: Fort Shame". The Columbus Dispatch. Archived from the original on December 8, 2024. Retrieved February 14, 2025.
  38. ^ Downing, Andy (September 29, 2023). "Scrawl continues to keep the drama to a minimum". Matter News. Archived from the original on February 11, 2025. Retrieved November 28, 2024.
  39. ^ "DromFest '24 Will Host The First Cell And Poem Rocket Sets In Decades". Stereogum. June 14, 2024. Archived from the original on June 15, 2024. Retrieved February 14, 2025.
  40. ^ Hart, Ron (August 26, 2024). "DromFest '24 Has Coaxed '80s and '90s Bands to Come Out and Play". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on September 17, 2024. Retrieved February 14, 2025.
  41. ^ Snyder, Adam (August 28, 2024). "Homegrown independent music fest this weekend in Catskill". Hudson Valley One. Retrieved February 14, 2025.
  42. ^ DeVille, Chris (October 23, 2012). "Rewind: Marcy Mays of Scrawl". Columbus Monthly. Archived from the original on January 23, 2025. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  43. ^ a b Robbins 1997.
  44. ^ "Columbus Trio Scrawl Returns to Cleveland | CoolCleveland". coolcleveland.com. Archived from the original on October 3, 2024. Retrieved February 14, 2025.
  45. ^ a b Lobinger & Ferris 1986.
  46. ^ a b c Hainer 1992.
  47. ^ Petkovic, John (June 13, 2013). "Columbus trio Scrawl plays a rare show at Cleveland Heights' Grog Shop Saturday". Cleveland.com. Archived from the original on November 17, 2022. Retrieved December 6, 2024.
  48. ^ Carlson 1995, p. 8-9.
  49. ^ Sullivan 1993.
  50. ^ Eddy 2009, p. 74.
  51. ^ McDonnell 1999.
  52. ^ Gentry 2012.
  53. ^ McGovern, Gerry (1993). "The Unforgettable 5". Hot Press. Archived from the original on February 12, 2025. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  54. ^ Anderson 1995.

Bibliography

Further reading

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