Joe Gideon & The Shark – Harum Scarum

Not a moment too soon for the debut LP from this idiosyncratic duo. Joe Gideon and Viva 'the Shark', fraternally related and formerly of Bella Union alumni Bikini Atoll, have used their gestation period wisely playing well chosen shows (including a pleasingly billed Nick Cave support slot) and sharpening their lo-fi but oh-so-satisfying noisy blues. The outcome would appear to be this weird, funny record.The make-up is thus: Gideon on vocals and guitar. Viva on everything else. Live witnesses will have been charmed by the laconic vocalist and his cooler-than-cool sister who pivots between drums, keys and guitar, and the combination translates well here. Necessarily, the sound has been beefed up a little with subtle quirks added throughout, but the effect is much the same. Sharp editors, the duo keep it simple; with pummelling, reverberating drums, meaty and elastic guitar riffs and the narration riding cleanly over the top of everything else. What initially threatens to be a stoner record opens out into a spectrum of influences that all have the decency to sit quietly beneath the songs, letting the band's own sound blossom. As the record opens, Gideon's voice sounds like Mark E Smith with a hillbilly swagger, but across 45 minutes it will mutate from barfly raconteur to deranged spiritual howl.The pair are born storytellers - if they tap into a sense of blues tradition (and they do), it's in the way each song sits you down for a quiet word, and over a few imaginary whiskies, spins you a colourful yarn or props you up with some sage advice (the downbeat but robustly comforting 'Anything You Love That Much You Will See Again' being the best example of the latter). They're personable; eschewing cliché, each song bears the gift of familiarity and quickly settles in like an old, rather sarcastic friend.It's the delivery that carries these songs to their full potential. "What I didn't like about him was the way he smelled... And his stupid curly hair." Take a line like that, add Gideon's deadpan, slightly paranoid growl as he recounts a tale of a bullied childhood companion... The result is blackly funny and pitiably vivid in its character depiction. The same tone injects surreal, unhinged humour into lyrics like "My mum and dad had a few harsh words to say about that..."Elsewhere Gideon's vocals turn querulous and preacher-manly, like on the righteous 'Civilisation', augmented by Viva's gloriously reverent and well timed choral backups at unexpected and delightful lyrical points ("...like La-ars von Trierrrrr!"). Though little alike sonically, in their boldness and timing Joe Gideon and the Shark make like McLusky, in simultaneously extracting a chuckle and a "Fucking YES!" from the satisfied listener.In its entirety, Harum Scarum is unfussy and bluesy but free from the retrospective chains of any attempt at authentic homage. It comfortably straddles the divide between 'funny as fuck' and 'awesome'. But achingly funny as it frequently is, let this writer stress - this is absolutely no comedy record, intentional or otherwise. Above all it sounds modern, relevant, deadpan, on the money and a contender for the best thing you'll hear all year. 82%

Download Joe Gideon & The Shark's recent single 'DOL' from our current TLOBF mixtape here.