Shark Speed – Seasick Music

The best thing that Shark Speed’s got going for them is their absolutely unyielding confidence. Seasick Music is self-released, the band’s from Provo, Utah – not exactly a hotbed of indie rock in comparison to places like Portland or Chicago – and it’s their first album; and yet this sounds like something by a seasoned band that could’ve (and most likely should have) come out on any of the bigger indie rock labels likeDeep Elm or Merge. The band’s that flawless and the songs come across as that fully realized. In vocal execution, song arrangements and actual musicianship, they just don’t miss a step here. Shark Speed’s brand of math-rock normally isn’t normally my thing (at all), but this shit is just so well done, imbued with a sense of such relentless catchiness that I’m having a hard time keeping this sour look on my face.

Jazzy, dance-heavy rhythms and strong, belted vocals, with instrumentation that near-perfectly toes the line between punchy sections and terrific intricacies, Seasick Music comes out of the gate strong and never loses that momentum through ten songs. Sure, there’s apparent elements of Minus The Bear or Pteradon’s guitar noodlery – most notably in the instrumental interplay in “Man Of Sass”, but Shark Speedadds some nice capstones onto their own sonic architecture: the subdued trumpets and electronica in “Cast Off Dance Off” and the fuzzed-out backing vocals in “Freddy” really shine. They’re not aping anyone, by any stretch.

This one came as a total surprise. I’d listened to Seasick Music a few times while I as doing other stuff – it just doesn’t work as background music. It takes a few studied listens to peel back the layers and recognize just how much shit is going on in these songs – how complicated they are, while still firmly seizing that part of the skull that just wants the foot to tap away. Surprisingly strong record, and I figure these dudes will be getting some notoriety here in the future. Great work.