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Shrimp Boat
A Sampler of Something Grand
Aum Fidelity, 2004
by Dr. Christian Carey
Shrimp Boat was a Chicago indie rock band active from the mid-eighties to the early nineties. It has some famous alumnae -- Sam Prekop and Eric Claridge went on to form The Sea and Cake, while Brad Wood became a producer for such stars as Tortoise and Liz Phair. Along with Ian Schneller and David Kroll, they created four albums during the course of the band's career that would presage major influences on nineties indie, particularly that emanating from the Chicago scene: post-rock, avant jazz and the return of large instrumental arrangements in a pop context.Something Grand consists primarily of previously unreleased versions of songs, culled 16-track and 4-track recordings, live performances and radio broadcasts. As such, it provides another side of Shrimp Boat's history. This particular CD is a one-disc sampler of the three disc set (and four disc limited edition) that AUM Fidelity recently released. As teasers go, it will certainly compel listeners to want to hear more; it is also an excellent introduction to the band's music as a stand alone recording.
The 1992 recording "Honeyside" is buoyant pop, a bounty of musical detail. The arrangement includes a vigorous bass/drum groove, a double time guitar riff, a sing-song falsetto vocal chorus and a saxophone section. "Rocks are Oil" takes its cue from eighties bands such as REM, layering twangy reverberant guitar over a dash of banjo and slurred vocals.
Perhaps the most curious selection here is "Ollie's Song", a twelve minute opus that includes spoken word excerpts of Colonel Oliver North's testimony at the Iran-Contra hearings, accompanied by mock-epic crescendi and "boom-chuck" acoustic guitar strumming -- a tongue-in-cheek parody of Zappa-esque proportions. "Motorcade" puts a skronk saxophone solo on top of a syncopated surf guitar riff. Watch for the waywardly chromatic guitar solo, too. "She Ra" balances the simple construction of a lilting country dance with electric guitars and veritably howled falsetto vocals, a terrific concoction. But not all of the songs consist of juxtapositions of disparate musical elements; "Watched Pot" shows the band taking the subtlety down a notch and just rocking out, post-punk style.
Shrimp Boat had attitude, creativity and musical chops to burn. While it's a pity that there aren't tons of bands active today making varied music that is both inspired and quirky, this is quite a reminder of how polystylistic music-making should sound.
-October 05, 2004