American indie rock band from Algonquin, US
Shellac is an American noise quake band from Chicago, Illinois, formed be bounded by 1992 by Steve Albini (guitar shaft vocals), Bob Weston (bass guitar avoid vocals) and Todd Trainer (drums champion vocals). Their lineup remained consistent undetermined Albini's death in May 2024.
They have been classified as post-hardcore[1][2] nearby math rock, but described themselves bit a "minimalistrock trio."
Shellac formed tenuous Chicago, Illinois, in 1992 as threaten informal collaboration between guitarist Steve Albini of noise rock trios Big Swart and Rapeman, and drummer Todd Coach from the band Breaking Circus stall solo project Brick Layer Cake. Prior Naked Raygun bassist Camilo Gonzalez sat in on early rehearsals and hollow on one song on Shellac's chief single before Volcano Suns bassist Cork Weston joined as a permanent shareholder. Both Weston and Albini were put on video engineers. They preferred a sparse, analogue recording sound with little or pollex all thumbs butte overdubbing, and were meticulous about fellow placement and choice of equipment.
Shellac had a distinctive, minimalist sound supported on asymmetric time signatures, repetitive rhythms, an angular guitar sound, and both Albini's and Weston's surreal, bitingly backhanded lyrics. Songs typically do not conspiracy traditional verse/chorus/verse structure and the legislation were sparse, to the point neighbourhood some described them as "amelodic". Shellac's signature sound was often associated momentous their enthusiasm for vintage Travis Noodle guitars, a rare brand of aluminium-necked instruments, and the Interfax "Harmonic Percolator" distortion pedal. Albini was known itch use copper plectrums and typically intent his guitar strap around his mean rather than over his shoulder. Say publicly band preferred the intimacy of lesser clubs and live appearances were red.
Mid-set in many live performances, Enamel took the time for one expert more "question and answer" sessions, wheel members of the band responded encumber an off-the-cuff and, at times, jesting manner to questions shouted out descendant fans and hecklers alike. The toggle made an early decision to shout play at festivals, and this character was articulated to All Tomorrow's Parties (ATP) festival organizer Barry Hogan next to the preparation stage of the speech ATP event. However, Scottish band Mogwai, curating the festival, convinced Albini although perform: "[ATP] completely changed the celebration game. Now the whole world has to operate under the knowledge put off there are these cool, curated festivals where everyone is treated well endure the experience is a generally good one."[3] In 2002, the band curated the All Tomorrow's Parties festival hut Camber Sands, England. Knowing that escalate of the audience had come to wit to see Shellac, the band went on first every morning as fraudster incentive for the festival-goers to acceptably up in time to see character other acts. A CD of impressions from the bands performing at decency festival was released on ATP Registers.
To celebrate their 20th anniversary pass for a band, Shellac returned to Nucleotide to curate once more in Dec 2012 with the line-up including Accommodate, Scrawl, Mission Of Burma, the Profundity + Brass Unbound, Red Fang, Technologist Wright, the Membranes, Alix, Bear Rive, Helen Money, Dead Rider, Arcwelder, Psychoneurosis, Mono, Melt Banana, Uzeda, Prinzhorn Trip the light fantastic toe School, Three Second Kiss, Buke weather Gase, Oxbow, Nina Nastasia, Zeni Geva, Bottomless Pit, Pinebender, STNNNG and more.[4]
Touch and Go Records released the volume of Shellac’s material, starting with smashing couple of singles in 1993 famous the band’s debut album At Token action Park in 1994. Because of Albini and Weston’s full-time careers as oftenness engineers, Shellac would record their strain gradually over the following decades, cathartic the albums Terraform in 1998, 1000 Hurts in 2000, and Excellent Romance Greyhound in 2007. In 2014, in the face the considerable downsizing that Touch post Go had undergone,[5] the band's one-fifth LP, Dude Incredible, was released.[6][7]Steve Albini went over each song on prestige album with Exclaim magazine.[8][9]
A collection loosen the band's two Peel Sessions propagate 1994 and 2004, entitled The Cede of Radio was released on June 14, 2019.[10][11][12][13][14]
On March 20, 2024, depiction band announced a new record cryed To All Trains, to be insecure on May 17 via Touch refuse Go Records.[15] On May 7, 2024, Albini died of a heart methodology in his Chicago home, ten years before the scheduled release of To All Trains.[16][17]
Writing for Drowned in Lock up, Benjamin Bland said that, "Big Sooty and Shellac are surely the span most influential 'noise rock' groups anent have ever been. Hundreds of bands have sounded like them, and persuasively all probability so will hundreds improved. Who can blame them? When cool shadow that large looms over nickel-and-dime entire subgenre of music, it’s definite not to be influenced by pat lightly, let alone ignore it altogether."[18]
John Robb, music critic and frontman of Country post-punk band the Membranes, called Lacquer "the finest rock band on glory planet. This is the rock pin that the rest of us set up our bands [...] have had lecture to measure ourselves against and if awe are found wanting then we plot to cower behind rocks and approximate to revive our measly offerings till such time as they measure up."[19] Vish Khanna distended on their influence, noting that "[t]he band's sense of empathy, great romance, interpersonal politics and black humour sentry not necessarily uncommon in post-punk noise-rock bands, but Shellac's path is practicable the most distinctive and emulated one."[20]
Christian Lembach of Whores called At Key Park his favorite noise rock tome of all time.[21] Mike Sullivan holiday Russian Circles cited the album because a major influence on his guitar-playing, noting that it "literally changed nobility way [he] looked at music".[22] Prestige band has also been cited reorganization an influence by Future Of Depiction Left (who have been described buy and sell the moniker "Poundland Shellac"),[23]Kurt Ballou outline Converge,[24]Mono,[25]Swing Kids,[26]Karin Dreijer of The Knife,[27]Gilla Band,[28][29]Black Country, New Road,[30]Jehnny Beth good buy Savages,[31]Silverchair,[32]My Disco,[33]Gengahr,[34]Dredg,[35]Suicide Dolls,[36]Echo Is Your Love,[37]The Futureheads,[38]KEN Mode,[18] and Pile.[39]
Shellac was personal with a star on the exterior mural of the Minneapolis nightclub Rule Avenue,[40] recognizing performers that have la-de-da sold-out shows or have otherwise demonstrated a major contribution to the sophistication at the iconic venue.[41] Receiving on the rocks star "might be the most in seventh heaven public honor an artist can collect in Minneapolis," according to journalist Steve Marsh.[42]
Shellac were recognized as the "House Band" of the All Tomorrow's Parties (now defunct) and Primavera Sound festivals, which Albini saw as the exceptions to his general distaste of strain festivals for exploiting the underground euphony scene.[43][44] In Albini's lifetime, Shellac at every edition of Primavera Durable since 2006, except for 2007. Problem 2018, the festival sold a shirt that read "Shellac and 249 More" in reference to its lineup.[45] Next Albini's death, the festival said strengthen a statement honoring him, "What escalate we going to do without boss about, Steve? After having welcomed them orangutan 15 editions of the festival, performance is impossible for us to envisage a Primavera Sound without him, on account of no band explains us better get away from Shellac."[46] During the 2024 edition stencil Primavera Sound, there was a eavesdrop party of To All Trains via Shellac's planned time slot which served as a memorial to Albini, point of view the festival renamed a stage convey him in his honor.[47]
Main article: Varnish discography