Reef Shark
Mind Race (Big Smoke)
Vancouver’s Reef Shark have followed up their 2014 debut Better Weather with a cassette EP courtesy of fledgling Vancouver label Big Smoke, displaying considerable depth as they venture into uncharted waters.
This time out, the duo of Devin Miller (guitar/vocals) and Garth Covernton (drums) enlist the help of former White Lung bassist Grady Mackintosh and Ruffled Feathers guitarist Matty Jeronimo, and the move has paid off.
Mind Race sees the band taking their post-grunge shoegaze pop to darker, more introspective places. Album opener “Leaving” begins with distorted guitars grumbling over a tom-heavy drumbeat, while Miller’s soft, plaintive lyrics provide the perfect sonic counterpoint. This juxtaposition of chaotic noise and gentle melody lies at the heart of Reef Shark’s sound. “These are the strangest times,” Miller pleads, before the song opens up into a polyrhythmic breakdown, belying the band’s musicianship. Many of the songs on Mind Race are prone to changing course like this, and this isn’t a bad thing. “See Ya Never” is essentially a pop song in three acts: beginning as surfy pop song, it moves into sentimental balladry before ending as a fuzzed out chug-a-thon.
Many of the songs bear the hallmarks of contemporary pop influences, at times invoking the likes of Arcade Fire, Girls, and even Vancouver’s own Destroyer. “Mind Race”, in particular, has a distinctly Dan Bejar-esque quality to it, with its laid-back synth lounge feel. But Reef Shark have an ability all their own to create dynamic songs that bring together raw power and delicate melodies. They may have left behind the sunny climes of Better Weather, but the waters they explore on Mind Race prove far more interesting.
Rating out of 5: ★★★ 1/2
• Reef Shark play from their new EP, Mind Race, with special guests In Odyssey, and Little Wild on Saturday, Nov. 28. 8pm at Biltmore Cabaret. Tickets $10 at Red Cat, and TicketFly.com
