The Shackeltons

(Listen here: http://www.myspace.com/theshackeltons)

If you've read some of my earlier posts, you already know that I sometimes go to the library and grab whatever looks even moderately interesting and get it. This has exposed me to a lot of bands and albums that I probably wouldn't have heard otherwise. My most recent find is a lesser-known indie band called "The Shackeltons."

When I listen to these guys, I hear a lot of different bands. I hear a lot of My Chemical Romance, but with hints of Interpol, a little 80's new wave/punk and even a bit of The Doors. This combination of sounds produces something really unique sounding, which is hard to find these days.

I'm not really one to listen to indie music, but I really like these guys. That's why I like going to the library so much, because I have no preconcieved notions of what the band will sound like, I just hear the music and decide whether or not I like it. I would have never heard LCD Soundsystem if it weren't for the library, they are completely outside of my regular listening pool.

Normally, I'm not one to listen to lyrics, but I really enjoy a lot of their lyrics. It's lines like "I'd rather see your soft heart than your soft skin" that really draw me into the song. The way the lead singer sings the songs and writes his lyrics reminds a lot of The Doors. Jim Morrison was actually a poet with no musical background before he joined The Doors, and it really shows in how he performs. The similarities in their style makes me wonder if the lead singer of The Shackeltons has taken a similar approach to writing music.

From what I have read about them, their lead singer (Mark Redding) gets pretty manic on stage, often running into his fellow band-mates. Apparently, after one of their early gigs Mark had a bit of his scalp missing from a run-in with a ceiling fan.

Right now, they are still a new band, and only have the one album out, but it looks as though they will release another soon.

So far, I've really enjoyed listening to these guys and I hope that I'll get some more good stuff out of the pile of CD's I got from the library.