Shellac

Shellac are one of the more enigmatic groups around today, made up of three guys who really have no interest in becoming a 'successful' band in the corporate major label sense, mostly because they have steady jobs elsewhere - two are extremely talented recording engineers and one runs a group of warehouses Minneapolis. One of the recording engineers is one Mr. Steve Albini, who is well-known in the independent music world for the distinctive sound of his engineering and is also noted for being highly opinionated.

Some of you may remember Mr. Albini from days gone past when he played guitar and yelped in 80s punk band Big Black, or perhaps his more recent band which was named after a disturbing Japanese comic book, the name of which I will not print here as I aim to keep this a family publication (but I will hint that it might just happen to rhyme with "grape plan"). Albini hates digital media, and prefers to release things on vinyl, which makes life a little frustrating if you don't have a turntable. Musically, you could say they cook up some frantic, precise drumming laced with brutal guitar damage and a tasteful melange of well-planned bass. I'll give you a prize if you go see them.

Not so long ago, Shellac released their third album, "1000 Hurts" which has the distinction of being at times more mean-spirited and at times more mellow than their prior releases. But perhaps the most important thing about Steve Albini is the fact that he endorses Nutter Butter Sandwich Cookies.

Links of note:

Shellac at Southern Records: http://www.southern.com/southern/band/SHLAC/.

If you'd like, you can email me here: richard@hearingmusic.com.

Oh, and all content on these pages is copyright Richard Lewis.