Most local buzz bands work hard trying to make their name in the Twin Cities music scene before even attempting to blow up across the pond. In the case of Howler, they did things in reverse, signing to the venerable U.K. record label Rough Trade while initially making big waves over in England, just as their hometown was still warming to them. The young Minneapolis-based quintet already had a small, built-in following in the area, due in part to frontman Jordan Gatesmith being the guitarist in Total Babe and Ian Nygaard and France Camp's involvement in Nice Purse. But the groundswell of local support for the burgeoning garage-rock band has been gradual when compared to the furor that has greeted them in the U.K., with even the illustrious NME declaring Howler one of the 50 Best New Bands of 2011. But the local boys seem to be living up to the endless hype surrounding them, and after the release of their dynamic debut, America Give Up, Howler seem poised to not only make it big in Minnesota but across the world.