Indie-Rock Ferocity Wrapped in Shoegaze-Brushed Melancholy –

90s nostalgia reverberates through the lush with melancholy guitar chords in the opening sequence of The Strolls’ Secrets, setting a tone that lingers like an afterimage before the track shifts into something sharper. That dreamy shoegaze-y reverie gives way to the diaphanous visceralism of early-00s indie, where a sardonic bite curls through the vocal inflections. The choral lift in the jangly arrangement keeps everything weightlessly infectious, yet there is an undercurrent of tension that builds as the track widens its emotional aperture. Secrets fires from an arsenal of thematic intensity, almost as if the band are exhaling something they’ve held in far too long. It is a different kind of breakup confession, one that channels the fury that arrives when patience finally dissolves and you recognise you’ve been keeping space for someone who poisons every room they enter without a facade.

That instinct for raw emotional expression ties neatly into who The Strolls are. The Fort Wayne alt indie quartet have always shaped their sound around genuine feeling, whether through Micah Gilliom’s tight percussion, Scotty Frank’s bass and vocal lines, or the way Joe Finch and Shaun Ross pull between atmosphere and urgency on guitar. Their Midwest roots come through in the unvarnished honesty of their songwriting, a quality that made their 2025 album SeaDogs such a magnetic listen, with melodic riffs and gritty-hearted storytelling carrying tracks like Call The Cops and SeaDogs. Secrets takes that foundation and gives it a sardonic twist, showing how the band can move between tenderness and fury without losing the thread of what makes their music resonate: they always tell the truth, even when it stings.

Secrets is now available on all major streaming platforms, including YouTube. 

Review by Amelia Vandergast