Twisted Teens are a slacker rock/alt-country duo from New Orleans, Louisiana consisting of lap steel guitarist RJ Santos alongside frontman Caspian Hollywell. Forming in 2024 & putting out a favorably received self-titled debut shortly afterwards, they would go on to follow it up with the sophomore effort Blame the Crown as well as the EU extended play in 2025 & even their last full-length Florida Water Blues earlier this summer. However, both teasers for their 4th studio LP & Sub Pop Records debut gave me the impression of the probability of them outdoing themselves.
The 2nd & final single “Stalks” blends alt-country, slacker rock, garage rock & punk blues for an intro reminiscent of the late Daniel Johnston mixed with King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard whereas the lead single “When We 1st Met” fuses slacker rock, garage rock, alt-country, cowpunk, power pop & punk blues sings about a couple doing everything together back when they initially got together.
“Be an Angel” moves forward embracing a garage rock vibe for a bittersweet look at a failed relationship while “Blue Rose” takes it back to their distinctive slacker rock sound so Caspian can sing about the relatable feeling of being replaced. “I Spend My Time Crying” takes a shot at fusing garage rock & country music admitting to holding anger towards a rowdy rider because it was easier than merely being sad prior to “Blue Flower” comes through with this minute long compositional interlude.
Meanwhile on the lo-fi “I Bring”, we have the Twisted Teens singing about buying a magic ring & giving it to someone prior to “Look in the Mirror” kickstarting the 2nd half using a lost romance as an illusion & telling an ex that they have to lie to themselves before even thinking of lying to Caspian. “Lock & Key” has a bit of a country twang to it telling the story of a man cooperating with law enforcement to help them take down a cartel while “Figure It Out” sings about hoping this woman will solve a problem without being told to do so.
“Armed with a Vision” nears closer towards the end of the album taking inspiration from Dinosaur Jr. pleading listeners to not let confusion determine the outcome of their everyday lives while “Every Flower” sings about the fact that we’re all flying in under the reaper & the time for our demise is closer than it ever was previously. “Darker the Night is the Brighter I See” concludes The Holy Cross Tigers bringing some acoustics in the picture for a creepy outro reminiscent of “Something in the Way” off Nirvana’s iconic sophomore effort Nevermind.
It hasn’t even been a few months since the Twisted Teens dropped Florida Water Blues & The Holy Cross Tigers has a real chance of comfortably joining Sunn O)))’s self-titled Sub Pop debut along with PISS’ recent debut you made me / skin on linen amongst the greatest music the Seattle indie label has to offer in 2026 with less than a couple months left. The loose breakup concept combined with the slacker rock, alt-country, garage punk, punk blues, cowpunk, garage rock & power pop production bringing every style they’ve explored full circle results in Caspian & RJ’s answer to Bob Dylan’s 15th album Blood on the Tracks.
Score: 4.5/5
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