The Electric Shakes from Bournemouth are causing quite a stir around these parts right now. They have a new, self-titled 6 track L.P. and we at RR have the pleasure of reviewing it. It opens with the now customary live opener “Go”. It’s a ballsy; loud, yet confident opener. A great guitar intro is coupled with clear, audible vocals and the now trademark “1,2,3,4”! Strong drums permeate the whole song, as do the chords.
“Get Loose” is an altogether faster song with their familiar “dirty Rock ‘n’ Roll” sound coming through. The Punkier fuzz-guitar intro is complimented by some frenetic hitting. There’s hints (to me) of The Subways (musically), until the vocals kick in and they make it truly their own. The style of the song “invites us” to “Get Loose”, literally-it’s a real stomper of a song and the guitars take centre stage throughout. ‘Get On Love’ has hints of Wolfmother and is another great musical slab. It’s a love song (of sorts-well I think so, make your own mind up! The noodling in the middle 8 doesn’t detract from it being yet another classic. I love the ending, I imagine this to be a great way to end a live show.
The highlight of this collection has to be “Daddy’s Girl”. There’s hints of The Clash and personal lyrics aplenty, with some great chord changes as well as strong drums; although it’s a tad overlong for this reviewer. The way this collection just morphs from one song into another works a treat. “Lightspeed Mother” stays with the format and those fuzzy guitars once again take centre stage. Gutsy vocals sung with real feeling and a singalong chorus make this another stormer. There’s some stretched chords in the middle which keep us entertained-in fact there’s nothing to dislike here! “Test of Time” slows everything right down and proves that the band are more than just a noisy, energetic 3 piece. Softer vocals paired with 70’s Rock chords and a song that just keeps on giving. If Kasabian had written “Test of Time” they’d be lauded from all and sundry. With regular shows to look forward to I’d say The Electric Shakes are definitely “ones to watch”.
If this EP is anything to go by though then the futures bright as I imagine there’s plenty more in the tank. If you have £5 spare you could do a lot worse than invest it in this LP. Better still, go and see them in a small venue while you still can-these guys are only gonna get bigger!
Tracklisting
Go
Get Loose
Get On Love
Daddy’s Girl
Lightspeed Mother
Test of Time
Links
http://www.theelectricshakes.bandcamp.com/
http://www.facebook.com/theelectricshakes
Review by Ross A. Ferrone,
