Owl took flight 20 years ago now as the brainchild of the youngest of the Baechle Brothers, Axell, at the tender age of twelve.  Seeking to follow in the footsteps of his musician-rich family, the band was possessed by the spirit of rock and roll taking influence from the greats in Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Thin Lizzy, and Budgie. Axell’s older brothers, Alex and Clint, ultimately joined providing the lightning rod needed to electrify the creation.

Over the years, the band has released three full-length albums, toured the United States and Canada, and embarked on a lengthy European excursion. Never afraid to experiment, the band has pumped out a wide spectrum of “hesher tunes” that lean heavily into the lanes of prog rock, proto shred, and of course, traditional heavy metal.

On The Rocks, the fourth full-length from OWL is the band’s most focused output to date. It’s ultimately an anthemic hard rock album that is delightfully inspired by the band’s myriad influences, particularly The Scorpions, Dio, and Grim Reaper.

Today, the band brings a track-by-track explanation of the album, which Ghettoblaster has the pleasure of sharing below:

“Flight Risk”
“’Flight Risk’ is one of Owl’s more collaborative efforts. Clint brought us the lyrics, I came up with a way to do the chorus, and Axell produced the theme which became the verse. From there, it developed in practice as we honed the transitions and added as many tasty licks as possible!” -Alex

“I’m pretty sure that ‘Flight Risk’ is the only Owl song I ever wrote the lyrics to. I thought of the chorus “awake, at the break of twilight,” and considered that it could be about vampires. But, of course, we soon realized that Owls are nocturnal creatures, and why not write an Owl song about owls? We’d never done that before. I was hoping that the music would capture a rockin’ DIO album opener song vibe, and I’m very happy with how it turned out.” -Clint

“2 Rock Or Not”
“It started as a joke – obviously – until I started fooling around with a way to deliver the chorus that wasn’t lame. I was trying to do hair metal, but with actual riffs. I liked the way a band like Ratt used these kind of mid-rangy chord voicings to establish a chunky hook, then built off of that. Of course, we added a bunch more guitars. ‘2 Rock’ is actually quite intricate. When we play it live, we have to get all the details right, or it falls apart.” -Alex

“Midtown Nites”
“Axell came in with basically the whole song, and the idea for the lyrics. It’s about a different type of partying that we don’t do! Like club dancing with a DJ. I always equated it with ‘80s Scorpions, and tried to bring that energy to it.” -Alex

“Without Reason”
“This was inspired by an eternal friend to the scene, the late great Scott Alcoholocaust. It was early spring, and I was humming the melody in Alamo Square Park, when a red-breasted robin – the first I had seen that year – landed in front of me and was checking me out. I took that as a sign, and invited (former Owl bassist) Jamie Sanitate, who was a close friend of Scott, to write some lyrics. We wanted to make it a more universal statement of knowing nothing in the face of the universe, and how music and good times is the only thing that sort of makes sense. We had never done a ballad before.” -Alex

“Ocelot Onslaught”
“Another collaboration, this was a Clint title that required Axell’s immediate attention. Owl loves to turn animal maulings of people into riffs, and it seemed overdue for us to do a ripping thrash instrumental. Axell came through with a vengeance, getting that nice jungle-y, Van Halen-esque main riff and adding in some Soundgarden touches. I introduced the King Crimson/Jeff Beck Wired breakdown and the transition to the second half of the song. Clint tears it up on drums as usual. Magic was game for this crazy venture and really does land the bass part – he didn’t just play the simplest thing.” -Alex

“Part of the inspiration from the tribal / animal / jungle vibes came from those rhythmic, funky, tom heavy Thin Lizzy songs like ‘Sitamoia’ and ‘Boogie Woogie Dance.” -Clint

“Pictured Rock”
“’Pictured Rock’ is a like hazy picture where you can’t quite tell what you’re looking at. The opening riff was the first thing I came up with in 2020, right before pandemic clampdown. Everything else was disparate parts that I then crammed into an unusual song structure. Somehow, it made sense to pursue a ‘60s psychedelic folk vibe.” -Alex

“One Strike To The Leather”
“’One Strike’ started as a rhythm, then I had to find words that fit. The initial idea came from seeing an old friend who kinda fucked me over. So, I made a song about holding ourselves and each other accountable, being tough enough to work on ourselves, not just critique others. Kind of a PG-rated ‘tough guy’ song, ‘One Strike’s’ a bit of a lark. It had to be short, but I think the energy works.” -Alex

“Quantum Signal”
“Axell’s ambitious song, I think it’s a statement of perseverance and a sense of mission. I like the depth it adds toward the end of the album. It has a melancholy to it, and strong vocal melodies.” -Alex

“Mortal Champions Of Rome”
“We knew we wanted one epic song to complement the album. ‘Mortal Champs’ riffs had been kicking around for years. The concept was originally the existential futility of being owned by the state for purposes of violence. Like even if you’re successful within that society, you think you’re doing good, but you become a monster serving a war/power machine. Then Axell brought in the second section which expanded the concept to create more of a hero’s journey, and a perspective external to the state development of killing machines. I think it really works, and it’s one of the Owl songs I’m most proud of. I want to do a psychedelic remix version and call it ‘Morel Champignons of Shroom.’” -Alex

The album sees release today, May 22, and the band is playing a release party on May 23 at Oakland California’s Eli’s Mile High Club along with Early Moods and Cobweb.