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If you don’t have anything nice to say, word on the street is you’re not supposed to say anything. This Soul Meets Body / Shagwüf / Ladada show is an event worth looking into. Soul Meets Body’s record release party comes with a caveat, though.
While I have no idea what SMB cooked up for its soon-to-be released record, I sincerely hope that it has made a concerted effort to choose a side; the band’s slew of singles and its singular EP did not fully commit to a stylistic direction. Think ’90s alt rock meets early 2000s retro ’90s alt rock—yet not “punk lo-fi who cares” enough to come across as reckless trash abandon, nor a pristine, well-considered production that elevates the songs to a more pop-minded avenue.
You can do both (see every Beastie Boys record after License to Ill)—but honestly, Soul Meets Body didn’t live up to the promise of what is clearly buried in its sound, and certainly not up to the hyperbolic press release that basically hails the band as the next big thing for people who don’t fit in anywhere else.
Yes, belonging is important. But I don’t know anyone who picks which bands they listen to based on how communal their shows feel. A lot of heart in those songs, but some attention to detail feels required. My hope is that the new record is a bona fide step up in recording quality and performance execution and then the live show will be the thing that drives it all home.
I write this because you don’t want to sleep on local fuzzsludge trio Shagwüf. That band is already living what I’m talking about with multiple solid releases under its belt supplying enough kickass songs to back up its effusive sets. Shagwüf will do it again at this show—and you can put money on it.
Look, I know, I know, competition is ugly, and there’s absolutely no reason to sew division when we’re all in this together. But the real enemies are out there and we have to strive to be better—better for ourselves and better for taking them down.
