THE STEEL CROWS
All my life, I have heard people say (complain) that they were “born in the wrong time” and that they “belong” in eras such as the 1970s. Maybe I’m the odd one out but every time someone says this, it feels as if a year of my life (and sanity) is shaved off. People from all over love to protest about the fact that we no longer have good music, movies, fashion, the list goes on. It’s infuriating because that’s simply not true, not by a long shot.
Our fashion has changed with the people, but you can still very much find vintage style clothing at thrift stores, online, and even from big-wig brands. The movies from before this time are still very much available to watch and share, PLUS we have all the new film works from this decade as well.
And last, but certainly not least, the music is thriving. Maybe not from a mainstream perspective but I can assure you that there are hundreds, thousands, maybe even hundreds of thousands of tiny rock bands working to put said genre back in the masses. Some give it a modern twist, some experiment with it, and some keep it nostalgic like the greats. No matter the band, one thing is for certain: Rock will not be silenced.
The Steel Crows are one of these hundreds of thousands of rock bands. Coming out of Orlando of all places, the trio of young rockers have been often compared to their influences; Led Zeppelin (the gods of rock), The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, and Aerosmith. The group consists of guitarist and vocalist Henry Minor, bassist Cole Whiteman, and drummer Aiden Baer and they embrace the old school ambience of rock n roll with all it has to offer. The flashy dressing, the hard hitting nature, and of course; the rebellion. A quote often related to the group states “To Rebel is to Live Freely” and that defiant energy carries itself with grace in their music, particularly their newest self-titled debut album.
Before I dove into the album itself, I got the honor of interviewing Henry of The Steel Crows in regard to the record, the band’s journey, and rock music in itself. To start off, I picked his brain about the group’s origins. “As a group our biggest influences include bands such as Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, Kiss, and many others. We love the sound of 1970’s rock and aim to have our music emulate the sound of our idols!” He said when asked about the band’s major influences and role models from a musical standpoint.
Being so young, I had to know more about how the group even got into rock music, as it’s a genre that hasn’t been found in pop music since the late 1990s and all of them are under the age of 21. “When I was 13 my parents took me on a trip to Seattle and they took me to the Museum of Pop Culture.” Minor began. “There I heard Rock and Roll by Led Zeppelin for the first time and instantly fell in love. From there I’ve never looked back.” He explained in relation to how someone so young could find rock music in this day and age.
Next, even though I was only interviewing a third of the trio, I wanted to know how they all met. As mentioned, it’s rare to find young people who are so engaged and in-tune with classic rock so for an entire band to form? Completely unreal and kickass all the same. “Cole and I met through our first bassist. He had to leave the band, and he had recently met Cole at school, so he had Cole come in and try out with us.” He said about the group’s bassist. Following up with more on the drummer, he simply said “We met our drummer Aidan through our previous drummer, who had went to school with him and seen him around the local music scene!”
I went on to ask about the group’s development so far, including questions about their lives and creative process. Fans tend to love to learn about the people behind the music they know and love, so that was a driving focus throughout the interview. “Often simplicity is better than flashiness.” He began, “It is very easy to fall into a trap of trying to play the hardest thing you can, or sing the highest note you can, but often that isn’t what is best for the song. The general listener enjoys something they can sing along to and can easily get stuck in their head.” Minor stated as the biggest lesson he’s learned thus far in the industry. He moved on from lessons to discussing the production of The Steel Crows’ work. “I almost always write the guitar parts to a song before I begin working on the vocals. I strum the guitar riffs and start singing gibberish until I have a vocal melody. I then begin writing lyrics, and around this point I bring the guitar arrangement to the band and we put the song together. Oftentimes Cole or Aidan will add sections or change certain parts of the arrangement and then the song truly comes together.”
Life on the road has always been something that’s not only compelling for me, but also a dream. And I’m sure the same goes for others. “As a whole our schedule is very different week to week, however we will outline a typical day on tour for us. We all wake up around 10 or 11 in the morning, and take about a half hour to get ready for the day. We get breakfast/lunch and head out to explore the town we’re in. We often drive by the venue we will be playing at to get a good look at it. We get dinner and head back to the hotel to prepare for the show. We play the show, meet fans, often we hang out with the bands after, then head to the hotel to go to sleep and do it all again the next day!” Minor mentioned with concern to tour life and its intricacies.
One question that I’m sure more than just I have wondered is the backstory behind the band name. Some groups tend to pick a name out of a hat whereas others choose one that’s more thematic or historical to the musicians themselves. “When I was in high school I fell in love with rock music and decided I wanted to start a band. The first thing I had to do was come up with a name. So naturally one morning my mom and I sat in a room and shot names off. Eventually one of us came up with the name The Steel Crows and it’s stuck ever since.” He explained.
To end things on a pensive note, I asked the age-old question that seems to be quite the hot topic online and in the rock community as a whole: What Does Rock N Roll Mean? “Rock and Roll is a way for all of us to express ourselves.” He answered, “We all love the rush of being on stage and feel as though we are natural performers. It’s a chance for us to come out of our shell and try things we wouldn’t have thought of otherwise. It’s a way to connect us to so many amazing people and open the doors for so many amazing experiences.”
It was refreshing and almost exciting to get the opportunity to speak with people my age that hold the same passion for rock n roll. Our generation, for the most part, seems to want to leave that music in the past, so it is a nice reminder that that feeling is not universal. Rock n roll is not only a genre, but it is a spirit, a language, and a way of life. Henry Minor just seems to understand that through and through and surely, the other members do as well.
After interviewing Henry, I got even more excited to review this debut album. Debut records are almost always a huge milestone in musicians’ careers and I wanted to do The Steel Crows justice by accentuating how big of a step this is. The record, which was released on January 11th of this year (2024), follows three singles and a collection of demos from last year that garnered them their initial following. Compiled of 8 songs, I picked two out to highlight, as they emulate the true energy and flair of The Steel Crows.
TRACK V - ISOLATION
Isolation begins in a sort of ghostly and dreamy way similar to the music of Rush, Styx, and even Pink Floyd. Minor’s vocals are distorted to layer onto this previously-established vibe of disorientation but it soon picks up around the 1 minute mark as the guitar and vocals suspend themselves into a “harder”, ballad-like state of sound. It is almost comparable to a call and response between the two, as they feed off of each other while the song builds and ultimately falls off into that same astray ambience just in time for the following track. The lyrics, if you could guess from the title, pertain to elements of loneliness and the pitted darkness that’s involved with such a thing as Minor sings “The horrors of isolation have chipped away at my mind. I try to escape the sound of silence but I am still left alive”.
TRACK VI - FIGHT OF OUR LIVES
Being the band’s second most streamed song of all time, Fight Of Our Lives is rock n roll no matter how you spin it. Minor’s vocals are gritty and raw, his guitar work is bold, Baer’s fire on the kit is hot with energy, Whiteman’s bass contributions are engaging, and overall, the song seems to have come right out of a fight scene (fitting title, no?). The song’s guitar solo is a notable and worthy factor as it’s heavy on the wah compared to the record’s other songs, but it flows with the vibe The Steel Crows have got going for them; which is, to put it simply; kick ass, ablaze, and puissant.
Moving forward, the next steps for The Steel Crows have yet to be revealed to their fanbase. Their debut album has already received praise from many other than just myself and it has several people around the country longing for the three piece to tour more extensively than in the past (up to the Midwest, perhaps?) Their newest single, All of My Love, is also now available on all streaming platforms.
Listen to The Steel Crows on Apple Music & Spotify!