One of the most treasured phrases in the indie oeuvre is as follows, give or take a word or three: In a perfect world, this band would be HUGE.
And why not? Every TML (true music lover) has a stable of bands pent up in their My-Pods that they feel to be their secret weapons, their own special group of Bands The World Didn’t Quite Embrace But Should And Could Someday Through Reissues, their own audio obsession to which they can honestly say, “someone didn’t love you enough, but I’ll make up for it.”
So, with the above in mind, let me whip out another phrase, which will blow you away EVEN MORE WITH ITS RIDICULOUSNESS: The world MUST be perfect, because Shearing Pinx are NOT huge.
Haha, nonsensical enough for ya? Well, don’t worry because I’m driving for a fairly serious (third) point here, which is thus: Some bands should not, could not, and would not be appreciated by the masses. Furthermore -- and they’re not going to tell you this at music college, kids -- roughly 10% of these unappreciated bands are actually the crème of the crop, the best in the basket, the nicest-colored necktie, the... most memorable, and not despite, but BY VIRTUE of their inaccessibility.
I place all of this Reviewer Theory before you, fellow TMF, because Shearing Pinx hit that EXACT all-caps spot in your brain. They’re just salty enough to make you wince, yet they aren’t Gulcher fare either; the singer sings, relatively atonal as his voice may be at times, and you can hear each instrument distinct from the next, save the guitar, which is absolutely buried in the mix and as such provides one of the most distinctive, pleasurous (new word baby!) aspects of the Pinx sound. That said, the noise freakouts tucked in tight at the end of a few songs tend to push the six-string action further up front.
Each trait mentioned in the last paragraph would be moot if Shearing Pinx didn’t toy with the very nature of recorded rock, but they do. Oh baby, do they. You might hear a conventional passage or two, but on the whole, SP are all about shaving underground rawk of its traditions.
Is there a more noble undertaking? Not from where I’m sitting.
1. Smarts
2. Called by the Wrong Name
3. Knifefall
4. Sick Hands Off
5. Held Under
6. Snake Skins and Skull Scars
7. Condestruct
8. South Dakota
9. Knerves
10. No/face
11. Hate Rider
12. Scanner
More about: Shearing Pinx
