Scrawl is an American musical trio based in Columbus, Ohio, United States. The founding members were Marcy Mays (lead vocals, guitar, songwriting), Sue Harshe (bass guitar, backing vocals, songwriting), and Carolyn O'Leary (drums). Their first show, in the summer of 1985, was a 20-minute opening spot for the Meat Puppets. Their first album, Plus, Also, Too, was self-produced (with Andy Izold) and released in 1987 on the local label No Other Records. The following year the band was signed to the ill-fated Rough Trade Records U.S., for whom they released two albums, He's Drunk (produced by Jim Rondinelli) and Smallmouth (produced by Gary Smith).

Their raw, somewhat primitive sound is influenced by the UK post-punk scene of the late 1970s (e.g., The Raincoats, The Slits, The Mekons), but their American inflection influenced the Riot Grrrl sound of the 1990s. When Rough Trade U.S. filed for bankruptcy in 1990, the band was forced to bid for their master recordings at auction during the label's Chapter 11 proceedings. Fortunately, they succeeded. Their next release, a seven-track EP called Bloodsucker, was released on the Chicago-based Feel Good All Over label (then reissued on Simple Machines Records).