Sharkorama and the lo-fi existential punkery of "i don't think the u.n. is out to get you / call-in shows"

 

"I'm not an expert on what's cool / i break my own rules / i associate with fools and i don't think the u.n. is out to get you..."

Why is Lo-fi punk, Lo-fi rock a genre? So much so that some artists spend a lot of money and time to get this sound. While other's have more purist ways and reasons. Taking vintage steps like recording tracks on cassette, via old boom boxes, or playing essentially live and experimenting with pencil mics, phones, and all manner of equipment to get the best possible and most artful degraded signals. 

For me, a good lo-fi sound feels scratched and purposefully imaginary like Polaroid images that somehow don't feel exactly real. And there is the sense of a demo sound, of sweaty garages that give the artful recording a sense of immediacy, and truth, the real thing without fixing. The utter opposite of the auto-tune, quantifying aesthetic. 

 "i don't think the u.n. is out to get you / call-in shows" by Chicago based man / band Sharkorama manages to feel incredibly potent and gnarly and messed up and perfectly imperfect. For all the raw garage rock aesthetic, solo singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Cody Knauer adorns the caustic sounds with lyrics that can feel young and foolish and existential at the same time. This time around "i don't think the u.n. is out to get you / call-in shows" is like an A and B single all at once. The two songs (or are they one?) are separated by piece of dialog and both songs are shaped similarly like veiled mirror images. 

Cool stuff, cool beans. "i don't think the u.n. is out to get you / call-in shows" is the first glimpse of Sharkorama's upcoming EP "everybody from the future is dead" produced in Cody's unfinished Chicago basement: "The crunchy guitars, trashy drums, and wobbly four-track sound form an unabashedly lo-fi mix, rough around all edges."

-Robb Donker Curtius




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THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM - PRESS NOTES:

https://twitter.com/shark_o_rama

https://open.spotify.com/artist/1hDDOScZbLTgoCPEc4V2An

https://sharkorama.bandcamp.com/

https://www.instagram.com/shark_o_rama/


Combining hyper-literate lyrics and loose, joyful instrumentation with an uncompromising DIY aesthetic, Sharkorama crafts earnest rock ’n’ roll for slackers. The solo vehicle of Chicago singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Cody Knauer, Sharkorama brings anything-goes energy and Midwestern swagger to a nostalgic sound that falls somewhere beneath the indie-rock umbrella.

** At this particular time we find ourselves in a financial pinch due to many factors. We want to keep AP going. It has been a passion project for over 13 years. PLEASE consider donating, we could really use the support. Thanks so much


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Sharkorama, Chicago, singer songwriter, diy producer, engineer, multi-instrumentalist, Cody Knauer, lyrical angst, existential punk, 4 track recording, "i don't think the u.n. is out to get you / call-in shows",