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Picture someone crooning Al Green and uninhibitedly shaking their rump round in a circle, really fast. The unbearable awesomeness of this mental image does not even come close to the fervor you will feel after hearing New Zealand's latest offering, Shaky Hands.
Resurrecting the now-so-cliché-as-to-be-cool antics of amp climbing and rafter scaling, Nick Johnson leads an impermeable lineup of Phil Hadfield (bass), Michael Ramirez (guitar) and Brent Harris (drums). A tightly wound troupe of indie idealists who believe punk’s not dead – again.
Every track on their 2006 self-produced debut EP 'Cut Off Your Hands' is a stunner, with crafty hooks reminiscent of Gang Of Four, Q And Not U and At The Drive-In. It’s exclusive Australasian release through Speak n Spell has given fans this side of the hemisphere a taste of what is to come in 2007.
“The reception we've been getting from the EP has been great,” raves Phil on the phone from Auckland, New Zealand. Following an Australian tour with Canada’s Pony Up and significant radio support from Triple J for ‘You And I’, they have been pulled on the summer tour bus with The Datsuns. This culminates at Australasia’s leading music festival, The Big Day Out. After heading to SXSW in March ‘07, UK fans will be able to experience Shaky Hands for themselves.
When asked to describe the band’s sound in the wankiest way possible, Phil’s answer is anything but, and surprisingly self-deprecating. “It's aggressive and energetic, simple and fun. We're in no rush to be famous or anything like that… We started this band to have fun and we are!”
And as excitement grows for New Zealand’s Shaky Hands, they will continue doing what they do best, and for the love of it.
For more information check out their MySpace page.
