Be Sweet To Me

Violet Grohl — 2026

“Be Sweet To Me turns ’90s alt-rock grit into a confident debut that stands on its own.”

Be Sweet To Me is a debut that actually sounds how I thought it would, given that Violet is Dave Grohl’s daughter. Selfishly, it is also the sound I was absolutely hoping for. Guitar music like this has lately been creeping back into the wider audience spectrum and this 90s alt vibe on Be Sweet To Me carries attitude, volume and grit. That is a good thing as Grohl built the whole thing inside producer Justin Raisen’s home studio, walking in with inspiration from ’80s and early ’90s playlists and a band that could easily meet the expectations. The album has its garage moments, but it also finds the right balance by showing some vulnerability. She can charge with all teeth one minute and then drop to a tender melody the next. With those two sides the album is strongest when it goes hard, as a couple of the softer turns let the tension slip before it pays off. For a debut record Be Sweet To Me is a success. It establishes her sound, doesn’t live in the shadow of her father and with some growth ensures a potentially really good sophomore album.

“THUM” is a lead off track that grabs your attention right away. It just crosses the two minute mark, and is built on a guitar tone thick enough to leave a mark. Grohl quickly shows off her range and moves from a murmur to a flat out yell as she wrestles a habit she can’t shake. It’s the clearest proof of what Grohl is capable of when she keeps things short and edgy. “Cool Buzz” starts off with rattling drums and a very grunge guitar while she then takes a nice jab at punk when she taunts “Shoot my favorite arrow / Through the mind that’s narrow.” This is one of those tracks you can just imagine a crowd going wild as it explodes. “Bug in the Cake” is a track that I keep coming back to, where the album’s hooks and its hurt share the same room.

If you have had any great experience with the alternative scene in the 90s, this record will feel familiar in the best way. The Breeders sound is here with her ability to wrap a simple hook in guitars that buzz and lurch. PJ Harvey is here in the way Grohl lets a song get ugly and personal at the same time, and L7 is all over the snarl, attitude and the refusal to be polite about any of it. The other side of the rock fence showcases Grohl’s voice more, which had me thinking Juliana Hatfield and Liz Phair.

This is a solid debut for Violet Grohl. It feels completely authentic and the better compliment here is how confident she comes across. It would have been easy for this to be a forgettable attempt of recreating some records she grew up on. Instead, for this moment she’s made a memorable debut that feels right for today even though much of it carries a grit from the past.