Straight Outta Bandcamp is a regular feature on BDCwire that digs up solid recent releases from various artists in the wild Internet dreamland known as Bandcamp. A bit too much time spent tag-surfing the bandcamp pages of rockers near and far can yield extremely enjoyable results. Luckily, we’re here to share our discoveries with you.
Five years ago, Real Estate jumped on the scene with an outstandingly hazy self-titled debut. The track which stuck with me the most from that rookie release was “Suburban Beverage,” a tune that was largely instrumental, but perhaps the most sentimental on the record. Five years later, Shark?, a Brooklyn quartet that has been wreaking havoc around Brooklyn for about the same amount of time, has released an EP with an extremely likeminded leadoff track. “Big Summer (Summer Ale)” is a slow burning culmination of reverby noodles, crescendoing into a unified chant of “Big summer’s here!,” before diving into a contained mess of feedback. While it explores many of the same methods of its Real Estate counterpart, “Big Summer” isn’t just a ramshackle buildup of sunny riffs. The tune brings a bit more energy to the table, putting a basement punk twist on things and adding more of a celebratory vibe.
Many know Shark? for the band’s contribution of “California Grrls” to the latest “Grand Theft Auto” soundtrack. For those who have yet to dig deeper, shame on you, but the “Summer Ale” EP is a great opportunity for you to redeem yourself. Not only do you get the five and a half minute opening jam, but you get two other garagey romps, including a Guided By Voices cover, “Game of Pricks,” to close it out. While the EP was released over a month ago, it’s a good enough seasonal listen to remind you that August is still another month of summer, and another opportunity to keep the party alive.
Check out ‘Summer Ale,’ streaming in full below:
