Clever Girl / Belmont

Nashville rock duo The Criticals (Parker Forbes and Cole Shugart) released their debut EP for Fantasy Records titled Front Door Confrontations, in 2023. Friends for more than a decade, having first met as children at music camp - Forbes and Shugart logged time together in Nashville’s wild DIY rock scene. The two musicians quite simply feed off one another’s energy and not only has it made for a close friendship, but an incomparable musical partnership that blends tuneful classicism and indie-rock thrash into a seductive, unforgettable mix. Now, following a pair of highly-regarded EPs—2019’s Mimosa Hygiene and the following year’s Sour Grapes—not to mention a steady diet of raucous live shows, the band’s most accomplished work yet, is Front Door Confrontations.