Imagine a band that exudes musical creativity and power by using elements to convey a grand story. Imagine a stage strung with a warm glow of white lights, littered with flowers of all kinds. Picture if you will, this band. This band is called The Shackeltons. They have amazed and inspired their audiences with their story of lost love and new hope.
ALBUM REVIEWS
Cult of Impersonality
Their formula works -- quite well -- though it doesn't do a whole lot to ingratiate the band to any of those styles' scenesters. Instead, it forges its own identity. Making passing allusions to everything from Fugazi's military-precise arrangements and The Pixies' penchant for noise-as-pop arrangements to The Murder City Devils' ear-splitting heartache and British Sea Power's uncanny ability to live at the edge of the deep end without falling over it. Coming straight out of nowhere, The Shackeltons packs a sucker-punch wallop for anyone not ready to deal with such an articulate, well developed voice as the band's.
- Matt Schild, Aversion
Aversion’s Review on the Shackeltons
“The Shackeltons might just have committed career suicide by putting out a debut that's this good. Coming out of nowhere to bombard listeners with a proprietary blend of post-hardcore guitars, soul-splitting heartache and dynamics that pulse, tease and flit with up-down arrangements before blowing the roof off, The Shackeltons sets the bar high for the Pennsylvania five-piece. Possibly impossibly high…”
- Matt Schild, Aversion
KEXP Review on the Shackeltons
This Pennsylvania band debuts with a razor-sharp set of anthemic post-punk that occasionally brings to mind former greats like the Pixies, Mission of Burma and Fugazi, blending dynamic, tension-filled arrangements, angular guitar lines and Mark Reddings anguished vocals for a sound thats as passionate as it is exhilarating.
- Don Yates, Music Director, KEXP
The Ship
Love, love, love. The Shackeltons seem to cover the subject quite a lot. However, you shouldn’t expect applesauce-mushy songs about walks in the park and calling a loved one nothing but “baby.” Instead, their tales seem to emphatically suggest that love is about struggle. It is often lost and always with a distinct sense of vulnerability. Coming from Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, the cold that surrounds them seems to creep across all obstacles and into the music itself. Through their music, The Shackeltons represent love not as some fairy tale existence, but rather, as a real, truly human experience. No matter which emotion they happen to be shedding light on at the time, their imagery is devastatingly beautiful: “…your eyes are my getaway ship. I could sail a thousand shores between your eyes and your lips.” This is definitely not a band to miss out on.
- James Shahan, Urb Magazine
January Rewind
http://instrumentalanalysis.blogspot.com/2008/02/january-rewind.html “After struggling through our Best Of 2007 posts, Joe and I decided to start a new feature. At the end of every month, we are going to recap some of the musical highlights of the month that was. …January was a great month for regional releases. There was not a huge quantity of them, but there definitely was quality.”
PRICK Magazine, Feb 2008
“You quickly notice a few distinct differences that put the Shackeltons above the fray... The quirky eccentricities of singer Mark Redding's vocal stylings create and audible tension that forms the music into something purely passionate. The Shackeltons just do it right. The album contains a veritable hodgepodge of sporadically placed tempos and melodies that somehow sound soothing when they should have driven you into a maniacle fit. Thats how the entirre album feels; your ears either ride the waves of the fervent vocals until they crash upon the shore or they sail of into the frozen expanse.”
The Shackeltons Album Review - Cave 17
http://www.cave17.com/?p=68 “ÉI hear 800 records a year and can tell 50 of them apart and suspect that 20 of them have something to say sonically or lyrically. It’s nice to hear something that believes that it really matters again. These guys mean it.”
The Shackeltons - The AV Club
http://www.avclub.com/content/music/the_shackletons?utm_source=avclub_rss_daily “A tight five-piece whose proficiency allows integration of several satisfying Guitar Hero modes into single songs - “Soft Heart” quickly flips an abrasive Fugazi-ish intro into sub-Franz Ferdinand alt-disco.”
The Shackeltons - Sound on the Sound
http://www.soundonthesound.com/?p=2495 “The Shackeltons is, and the Shackeltons are, about catharsis. The Shackeltons aren’t concerned with being witty or smart like your average indie band, they’re actually more interested in mining the depths of the human condition wherever it may take them. For the Shackeltons, to emote is to be human, and in the human experience there is no more important emotion than love. To emote completely and truthfully is essential to a healthy soul.”
The Shackeltons - Three Imaginary Girls
http://www.threeimaginarygirls.com/recordreview/2007oct/theshackeltons “I knew the album met my approval as I drove to work and found myself continuing to turn up the volume further and further until I could feel the whole car rattling and humming. The Shackeltons is a vibrant, textured, emotionally intelligent album. I don’t know if my speakers will ever be the same.”
LIVE REVIEWS
“The Shackeltons Shakedown”
http://acedmagazine.com/content/view/1044/33/ “For the intense and angsty post-punk band The Shackeltons, music isn't just a passion. The music they create encompasses every fiber of their being. Their goal isn't to be the most revered band in the world; but that they truly touch their audience with their songs (though being the most revered band in the world wouldn't hurt either.) "I hope our music is like a friend to the listener. A friend in a torrent storm. A friend in the mystery of life. A friend in the aching and yearning of life. That is what music has been to me," said Shackeltons frontman Mark Redding, addressing the question so fluidly that his regular speech could be mistaken for lyrics or poetry…”
“The Shackeltons rock pants off at Neumo’s”
http://www.threeimaginarygirls.com/liveshowreview/2008apr/theshackeltons “…You could tell the whole band is used to his antics. Mark Redding flies too high; if there's one thing I was sad about during this set, it was that there's a good chance The Shackeltons' singer will flail into rehab before they finally take off. Despite that, Redding held it together during the songs (for the most part) and pulled off what I've expected since I first heard the band's debut album: a punk-pop set that was one of the best I've heard in a long, long time.”
“The Shackeltons at Beauty Bar Austin”
http://www.sonicitchmusic.com/?p=1900 “Missed The Shackeltons @ The Beauty Bar last Monday? You probably missed out on one of the more entertaining shows of the week. In fact, you did miss out on a great show, that no one in town is talking about right now, but those who did witness are doing so. I can’t completely blame you for missing the show, as I almost missed it myself. Why did I almost miss it? The promotion of the show was almost non-existent and I can blame myself for being partially responsible for being neglectful in this effort. Aside from the lack of fanfare, The Shackeltons quietly made their way into Austin for an in-store appearance @ End of An Ear on Saturday, making acquaintances with the locals and making fans from the get go. The band is currently winding down their first tour of the states with a few more dates in May and June…”
“The Shackeltons rock pants off at Neumo’s”
http://www.threeimaginarygirls.com/liveshowreview/2008apr/theshackeltons “…You could tell the whole band is used to his antics. Mark Redding flies too high; if there's one thing I was sad about during this set, it was that there's a good chance The Shackeltons' singer will flail into rehab before they finally take off. Despite that, Redding held it together during the songs (for the most part) and pulled off what I've expected since I first heard the band's debut album: a punk-pop set that was one of the best I've heard in a long, long time.”
Artbeat SXSW Review
http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/03/13/sxsw-15-minutes-with-these-new-puritans/ "The Shackeltons, from Chambersburg, Pa. played knowingly frazzled rock. The band set out thick, burly riffs — hinting at the Stooges in one song, the Clash in another, Dinosaur Jr. in another — while Mark Redding blurted and ranted lyrics through a distorted microphone about pirates, insomnia and getting out of town. Singing about his desperate wish for “the bird of joy/the bird of hope/the bird of love,” he flailed with a little bunch of flowers in his hand."
Live in the Burg: The Shackeltons and Papertrigger
http://instrumentalanalysis.blogspot.com/2008/02/live-in-burg-shackeltons-and.html “They gave a high energy set and Mark Redding seemed to be quite inspired by the large audience and live radio broadcast of their set. The band gave a perfect backdrop to Mark’s potent lyrics and spastic stage presence.”
The Shackeltons
http://www.pennlive.com/entertainment/centralpa/index.ssf/2008/02/sandwich_money.html “The Shackeltons kicked off the set with a rather manic tune off their new CD. Noodly guitars cut through the thick fog emitted from the drums and bass. Attendees cheered as Redding strutted around the parameters of the stage as though he was the drunken grandson of Mick Jagger."
PRESS
Patriotic News “Living Up to the Hype
“After romping through half of its opening song, Shackeltons' frontman Mark Redding yelled to a packed Abbey Bar, "Are we alive? Are we alive, Harrisburg?" Their adrenalin-powered performance answered with a whole-hearted and full-throated "There is no doubt." Blasting out of Chambersburg, The Shackeltons appear to relish their performance even more than the crowd, and that is no small feat. "My heart breaks all night," Redding, shouts. It's a line one might find in an emo balled, but The Shackeltons scream it with all the guttural contempt of Zach de la Rocha, and no one is feeling sorry. However, Redding has an on-stage persona more akin to Iggy Pop -- energetic, charismatic, and from another dimension. The guitars of Eric Fisak and Dan Schuchman complement the vocals by interchanging between subdued notes and full-out frenzy. Rock has always been salvaged by wanton spirits willing to display themselves to the world. Are the charismatic and captivating Shackeltons capable of helping the rock phoenix rise from its contemporary ashes? A "Breaking Artist" in Rolling Stone with upcoming tour dates in Tennessee, Alabama, Texas, and Illinois they could be central Pennsylvania's next rock export.”
A Few Reasons Why the Shackeltons Are Ridiculously Amazing
http://jerseymike.org/?p=388 “A lot of bands try really, really hard to look genuine and sincere while maintaining that rock-and-roll edge that is so hard to perfect. But the term try to perfect doesn’t even need to be used when referring to The Shackeltons, because they don’t even need to try. They just are..”
Public Opinion (Gannett) Newspaper Weekender section (Feb 7, 2008) Chambersburg
“The difference with The Shackeltons is that while a lot of dance-punk bands seem to have a very put-on and forced sound and attitude, while the Shackeltons' efforts come off as wholly earnest or, as Spin Magazine recenty put it, "completely convicing". Their sound has more than just the dance punk leanings, though. Throuhgout the performance Redding, whose stage presence tends to make one feel either uncomfortably creeped-out or warm and fuzzy, can be seen careening through the crowd with various props (such as a poster of neo-soul singer Seal) or precariously perched on a tall swivel chair. The band, clad in surplus military shirts and jackets, play with a calculated restraint whic seems to be more brooding than amateurish concetration.”
My Old Kentucky Blog - The Shackeltons Review
“The Shackeltons are a Chambersburg, PA-based five-piece who released their self-titled debut on Loveless Records a bit ago. Lead singer, Mark Redding talks/sings/yells over garage/punk/new wave rock in a David Bryne/Jack White kinda way. At times, there is a Bright Eyes-esque flourish of sensitive emotions, but other times display a Rage Against The Machine kind of fury. All that blends into a pretty good time and a solid debut...”
Featured Artist: The Shackeltons - Alcatraz Red
http://alcatrazred.com/2008/02/05/featured-artist-the-shackeltons/ “The band’s recently released, self-titled debut is loaded with all sorts of influences. The most obvious are traces of the Pixies, Joy Division, and to a lesser extent Fugazi. If you listen closely you can also hear the Strokes and just a tinge of The Talking Heads.”
The Live Show vs. Recorded Works Debate - Sound on the Sound
http://www.soundonthesound.com/?p=2510 “An interesting conversation has started up over on TIG about the relative weights we assign to a live performance and a record when deciding whether or not we like a band. With regard to the Shackeltons, and the review of their album, which was the spark for this conversation: In my review the record last week I intentionally tried to write it without reference to their live show. It was a very difficult task. Lead singer Mark is a dynamic performer who brings a whole new set of meaning to the songs through his actions and words on stage. Drummer Sean is exceedingly talented and loud live, but I didn’t think the drum on the record really gave that impression. The Shackeltons record is truly meant to be listened to with the headphones on as loud as you can stand it, so you can really soak in the sounds and emotions, just as if you were at the edge of the stage, feeling the beat of the bass pounding against your chest. For this record, recreating the feeling of a live show is paramount. Because the Shackeltons really are meant to be experienced live.”
SXSW Part - Sonic Itch Music
http://www.sonicitchmusic.com/?p=1589 “Sonic Itch Music and group of good friends are putting together a little day party during SXSW 2008, and you are personally invited. We still have yet to name our little shin dig, but the band list has been confirmed and I felt the need to share. Joining me in this putting on this momentous event, which will be all the buzz this year, are Covert Curiosity, Sound on The Sound, Switchburn, Cubik Muzik, and a few more to be announced.”
Live Shows vs. Recorded Works: Who Do You Trust? - The Imaginary Girls
http://www.threeimaginarygirls.com/blogentry/2008feb/liveshowsvsrecordedworkswhodoyoutrust “The lively discussions surrounding the Shackeltons album review brought to light an interesting question: Do you need to see a band live to make a definitive decision as to their merits? If the record is mediocre but the show is amazing, how does that weigh into your opinion of the band? What if the record is great but the live show is lacking?”
Breaking Artist: The Shackeltons - Rolling Stone
http://www.rollingstone.com/blogs/breaking/ “Sounds Like: The Shackeltons provide a stout combination of clean, straight-lined production and cacophonous bursts of sound on their self-titled debut. Their blasts of angst, which are equal parts danceable bliss and seering noise, are held together by the jittery, literate lyrical musings of frontman Mark Redding.”
“Your Movement” by The Shackeltons - I Rock Cleveland Blog
http://irockcleveland.blogspot.com/2008/01/your-movement-by-shackletons.html “The guitars certainly sound more prevalent when they rage in the chorus, the bass sounds a bit bouncier, and vocalist Mark Redding’s delivery has been sharpened to a preachy punk rock tone, similar to Ian McKaye’s style during his Fugazi days.”
Shackeltons’ Debut Out Today - Seattlest
http://seattlest.com/2008/01/29/chris_wallas_fi.php#comments “In other bands-with-local-ties-and-albums-out-today news, the self-titled release from The Shackeltons is now available from John Richards’ Loveless Records. The angular Pennsylvanian post-punk/indie quintet are currently touring the East Coast until March, when they head to Austin for South by Southwest. And after that, maybe they’ll come here - hmm, please? For the time being, sate yourself with the band’s revamped webpage.”
Meet The Shackeltons - Instrument Analysis
http://instrumentalanalysis.blogspot.com/2008/01/meet-shackeltons.html “Last fall, I had the pleasure to meet The Shackeltons from Chambersburg, PA. They were some of the most sincere people that I have ever met in this business and their live show was so mind blowing, that I named them best live act of the year…”
Shackeltons breaking out of their Central PA base - The Sentinel
http://www.cumberlink.com/articles/2008/01/27/arts/night_life/reviews/story01.txt “It’s no secret that the region is producing more and more musical talent. But you don’t have to be a music buff to pick out a winner. Just listen to the experts. These days, Chambersburg band The Shackeltons is getting noticed nationally, with recent write ups in top industry press fueling interest with their growing fan base.”
Exploring new musical territory; The Shackeltons to release CD named on Rolling Stone site
http://www.herald-mail.com/?module=displaystory&story_id=182459&format=html J. Edward Keyes, who mentioned The Shackeltons in his Single Minded column on Rolling Stone’s Web site, said the band has “this terrific, fire-and-brimstone urgency about them. The singer is like a Baptist preacher gone bananas - so incredibly charismatic. The songs, too, are great - really dark and doomy. It’s like one fantastic spiral into the abyss. I hope they never change.”
Buzzgrinder Interview
http://www.buzzgrinder.com/2007/interview-mark-redding-of-the-shackeltons/#comments You do fall down a lot, and shake, and do all sorts of fun stuff at your shows. Do people at shows ever talk to you about that? Sometimes they ask me if it hurt; “Did it hurt when you fell on your back without catching yourself?” No. Adrenaline. I’m the baby of eight kids. I need attention. So I fall down. It was actually a coping method. I didn’t know what to do with myself in front of people in our first big show, so I fell backwards and flopped like a fish a few times.
Front Row with The Shackelton’s
http://www.soundonthesound.com/?p=650 “Friday night I watched wide-eyed and mouth agape as five modest small-town boys from Chambersburg, PA became a full out rock’n'roll spectacle. The Shackelton’s put on one of the most manic and inspired performances I’ve ever witnessed.”
TOUR DATES
Thu, May 15 Savannah, GA @ Guitar Bar - 9:00pm
Sat, May 17 Tampa, FL @ Heat Wave Festival Tampa - 10:00pm
Sat, May 31 Camp Hill, PA @ Gullifty’s Underground w/ The Thrives - 9:00pm
Thu, June 5 Winston - Salem, NC @ The Werehouse - 9:00pm
Fri, June 6 Knoxville, TN @ World Grotto w/ Luego, Tenderhooks - 8:00pm
Sat, June 21 Williamsburg-Brooklyn, NY @ After the Jump Fest - 8:00pm
Sat, July 12 Philadelphia, PA @ WXPN Festival - 3:00pm
Fri, Aug 8 Harrisburg, PA @ Appalachian Brewing Co - 8:00pm
