Crawler (album)

Crawler is the fourth album by British rock band Idles, released on 12 November 2021.

Crawler received favourable reviews and was nominated for Best Rock Album at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards.

Singles
The first single, "The Beachland Ballroom", was released on 28 September 2021 along with the announcement of the album. Prior to the album's release, the second single, for "Car Crash" was released. The song was about Talbot's terrifying car accident in the past.

Music videos
After the release of the album, Idles released two music videos from Crawler. The first, "When the Lights Come On" premiered on 13 December 2021 with direction from the company, Holding Hands with Horses. On 8 February 2022, the music video for "Crawl!" was released. The video was a claymation video directed by LOOSE and Edie Lawrence.

Artwork and title
The album cover features a contemporary home, with a man in a helmet and protective pads levitating in front of the home. The artwork for the album was a collaborative effort between lead vocalist Joe Talbot and photographer Tom Ham.

Music and composition
Crawler has been described by critics as primarily a hardcore punk, noise rock, and post-punk record, with elements of powerviolence and grindcore throughout the album.

Critical reception
Crawler was met with "universal acclaim" reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, this release received an average score of 82 based on 18 reviews. Aggregator AnyDecentMusic? gave the release a 7.7 out of 10 based on a critical consensus of 18 reviews.

Personnel
Idles
 * Jon Beavis – drums
 * Mark Bowen – guitar, keyboards, production, engineering
 * Adam Devonshire – bass guitar
 * Lee Kiernan – guitar
 * Joe Talbot – lead vocals, design

Additional personnel
 * Kenny Beats – production, engineering
 * Joe LaPorta – mastering
 * Craig Silvey – mixing
 * Chris Fullard – engineering
 * Charlotte Nicholls – cello
 * Colin Webster – saxophone
 * Dane Cross – additional vocals
 * Dani Bennett-Spragg – mixing assistance
 * Oli Middleton – engineering assistance
 * Stan Gravett – engineering assistance
 * Tom Ham – photography
 * Mishi May – costume design