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Sharkweek: The Hammerhead Nebula

had a déjà vu experience halfway through Whole Lotta Fish. I reviewed ‘The Spark of Inspiration’ by the Tom Bosley Experience and the lurid day-glo
pyschedelia had upset my delicate sensibilities. Perhaps I was trying too hard to hold on to my mind. Sure enough, Sharkweek is a new project for
Peter Lewis, formerly one half of the TBE. His approach proves distinctive – certainly hallmark elements remain from his previous incarnation; swirling, carnivalesque Casiotones, a sense of the absurd, and a self-contained, homebound know-how. This proves a largely cohesive affair, perhaps because the glut of tracks primarily explore the outer reaches of space and are narrated by a NASA scientist. Layers of keyboard wash form convection currents through which primitive drum machine rhythms clatter. Spoken vocal snippets introduce galaxial and other themes while a prowling keyboard bass glues things together. Sharkweek pulls back from the brink of chaotic
overload to simmer with a repressed mania and the effect is serotonin re-uptake inhibition. While defying categorisation, it is on a similar
wavelength to willful weirdos Wendyhouse, who provide a sample for the closing Goodnight Kiwi‚ and that other iconclast the Bing Turkby Ensemble.

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