For first single from his recently-formed supergroup Howl Owl Howl – including Hootie and the Blowfish’s Darius Rucker and the Black Crowes’ Steve Gorman – former R.E.M. bassist Mike Mills wants to smell like Ariana Grande oin “My Cologne.”
The trio’s debut title makes fun of the pop star’s beauty and fragrance that shares a name with her Sweetener track “R.E.M.” and also with his band.
Addressing their single in an Instagram, Mills stated “Ariana Grande put out a record not long ago, and her first single was called ‘R.E.M.,’ [Note: it was actually “No Tears Left to Cry,” but we’ll let it slide this time]. It’s the dream stage of sleep, that’s where we got it. It’s universal. That’s fine.” “And she put out a line of perfume called R.E.M. I said, well, okay, that’s okay. And one of the containers for her perfume was a cassette, I mean, literally a cassette, and it said R.E.M. on it. And then I said, OK, that’s going over the line. I gotta say something about that.”
While not upset about the connection with iconic group, Mike used the opportunity to lean into the moment, adding “I thought it was just funny.” “So we made a wrote a song called ‘My Cologne.’ The chorus line is, ‘I want to smell like Ariana Grande, and I think she wants you to smell like me.’ It’s all in good fun, and I hope she likes it.”
Having announced the formation of Howl Owl Howl in September, but only just starting to release music, the band’s streaming bio reads “Howl Owl Howl was born from friendship and the pure joy of collaboration, and is now powered by the world-class instincts of true originals, who are far from done making noise,” “Infusing roots rock with an open-minded afternative flair, the band’s first batch of music was 30 years in the making, matching a fluid, feel-oriented rhythm section to the barrel-chested vocal rasp of an iconic frontman.”
Preparing to tour come November 3, the band has a full length in the works.
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Author: Al Denté
Photo: KylaBorg