Review | The Shakamoto Investigation – Existential Bread

Label: Eeasy Records

‘Existential Bread’ is the debut album by three piece The Shakamoto Investigation and it’s a wild ride. From first track ‘Take It or Leave It’, The Shakamoto Investigation grab you by the denim jacket and fling you in to a sweaty mosh pit. Their sound is a blend of the weird side of 80’s hardcore such as Devo and some of the straight forward post hardcore like Minutemen. They don’t just stop at that though, there’s fistfuls of other genres thrown in like surf rock, Libertine’s style indie and rock but it’s all played with such intensity and speed that you can’t stop to think about what could come next.

The production and and style on ‘Existential Bread’ speaks to the band’s love of 80’s hardcore. While the songs can sound similar, the joy is in the subtle differences and the way that the songs can change on a dime and you’ve gone from Butthole Surfers style weirdness and noise to the precision punk of Gang of Four. ‘Dead Already’ is a great example of this with a verse that is all staccato guitar and intricate drums to the next section which puts the pedal to the floor and would be sure to fire up a mosh pit.

‘Existential Bread’ is a 30 minute joy ride and considering The Shakamoto Investigation have only existed for 3 years, it’s got the swagger, joy and abandon of a band 40 years prior.