Mass Shivers

Rewind to 2007: that is, fast forward to the present. Mass Shivers travel timelessness to deliver droning triumph vibes to the Masses of today. 'Ecstatic Eyes Glow Glossy' is simply the name of this vessel, the new offering. This is a complete record, a focused effort, a 360. It is also the second record from Mass Shivers! Don't let anyone fool you, it's a rock album -- are there hints at MC5 or Beefheartian guitar stylings, beats not far from Jaki Liebeziet, spooge from Steven Tyler's 80's heyday? Perhaps; but most importantly, there are RIFFS here-in. Lava-hot face melters and groove shakers. This is driving music, sure to inflate your tyre.

Front side, cut 1: "Womanizing Metal Studs" is the enabler -- is it a bass, or a guitar? It's depth and soul. It's toms deployed to polyrhythmic ghetto-booty beautification. Colourful, lean and crisp guitar leads interweave to fraction the quadrants of the mind-sight. Vocal rays reflect the fractal waves. It's a proper introduction to a record with an inner mission --- reflection leads to projection leads to harmonization leads to resolution.

Meditate to the layered feedback drones of "Quinine Peninsula" as they take you in and out of the pulsingly hypnotic metal-tropical stomp of "Mossy Nethers." Hop on board with the captain, and join the "Wild Animals Club." Classic rock grit seeps smoothly between the continuous long tones, and Ecstatic Eyes Glow Glossy satisfies.

While the group remains a tight trio at core - Brett Sova (guitar/vocals), Sean Wilke (drums), Andy Johnson (guitar/vocals) - there are ever collaborators and friends who can lay claim as part of the Mass Shivers sound. To keep up with their perfect pitch, keep your ears near and watch them closely...

Discography

Ecstatic Eyes Glow Glossy CD
(Pickled Egg Records, Egg 70CD)

Ecstatic Eyes Glow Glossy is the second record from Chicago-based Mass Shivers, though it’s the first to get an official UK/European release. The album was recorded at Shape Shoppe in Chicago, mere blocks from legendary Chess Records, under the supervision of Blue Hawaii, of Bablicon, Icy Demons and Need New Body fame. Hi flying duo Michael Columbia contributed to the hit single, "Mossy Nethers"

"Mutant blues, motorik rhythmathletics, early Eno whimsy and Stooges grindhouse riffage all rub their oily hips together like a deep-fried harmonic sex coven, and immaculately conceive a troubled but beautiful hot-chrome hybrid, we might just christen 'Captain Beef Can' if we're feeling asinine" [Plan B]

"Mass Shivers' full-length debut is awfully, awfully good. This Chicago trio (which becomes a quartet with a second drummer at live shows) captures the spirit of the best out-rock of the 70s: Can's free-form tribal-Teutonic drums, Beefheart's stomping junkyard riffs and unhinged harmonic imagination, Faust's cerebral jams, Eno's expansive pop palette. In less capable hands, this kind of ambition often results in little more than a self-conscious statement about the band members' LP collections, but Mass Shivers skirt that pitfall with their discipline and devotion to detail. Standouts like 'Womanizing Metal Studs', 'Downwind of Amour', and 'Mossy Nethers' (with guest turns from both members of Michael Columbia) are dense and complex, with meticulously organized, counterintuitive guitar lines, but the substantial vocal melodies and playful backup harmonies make the tunes not only approachable but memorable" [Chicago Reader]

"Together since 2003, the group mapped out a knotty post-punk direction on its 2005 debut full-length, before leaving it all behind for a sound more influenced by its members' shared love of the Stooges, Can and Fela Kuti. With a percussion-heavy twin-guitar attack, Mass Shivers lay on some heaping helpings of classic rock whomp, doing an electrifying job of engaging an audience more used to silently nodding along. The band sport some tightly arranged songs and honest-to-God tuneful vocals, but can still jam out with the best of them" [Time Out, Chicago]

"Barely over 28 minutes long, 'Ecstatic Eyes Glow Glossy' is a concisely abrupt affair that leaves a lasting impression. Though barely any of the songs on the album exceed three minutes, they all feel epic due to the band's wildly ambitious approach. As their self-titled debut also displayed, Mass Shivers show no hesitation in creating a sound that is both wildly imaginative and hugely enjoyable. 'Ecstatic Eyes Glow Glossy' is highly accomplished both in terms of songwriting and diversity" [obscuresound.com]

'Womanizing Metal Studs' (MP3)
'Mossy Nethers' (MP3)

Listen to Ecstatic Eyes Glow Glossy on Last.fm

UK: £10.00

EU: €15.00

US: $18.00

Reviews

Pitchfork
Time Out Chicago
Obscure Sound
Can You See the Sun?

Links

Mass Shivers Myspace
Mass Shivers own website

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