Music
The best kept secret in music
Press
"This Portland band�s debut should satisfy those flummoxed and/or disappointed by Clap Your Hands Say Yeah�s sophomore slumper. Both groups capture early R.E.M.�s breezy jangle and give it a twisted sideways glance, but the Shaky Hands reduce the bark and play up the loose-limbed folk vibe" Refreshingly uncluttered tunes like "The Sleepless" and "We Will Rise" bring a relaxed, back-porch quality to typically uptight indie-rock" - SPIN
"Occupies that lush space between M. Ward's sleepiness and Devendra Banhart's freakiness". - Magnet
"But the reason we're talking about the Shaky Hands here is that we can't get their insanely infectious tunes out of our head lately. I imagine if you're a fan of warm and fuzzy hook-laden rock of the Tapes 'n Tapes and/or CYHSY variety you'd really enjoy this, and if not, lighten up already". - Gorilla vs. Bear
Discography
Shaky Hands-EP (self released, not gonna find this one easy).
Shaky Hands s/t on Holocene Music (US) and Memphis Industries (UK)
Photos
Bio
Some bio stuff: The Shaky Hands formed in Portland, Oregon, in the fall of 2003. They began as a three piece with Nick Delffs (also of Castanets) playing guitar and singing, Colin Anderson playing drums and Paul Culp on bass. That year was spent performing in basements and living rooms. Following Culp's departure in 2004, Mayhaw Hoons and his hair joined the band, soon followed by second guitarist Jeff Lehman. Around this time Nick and Colin traveled to Bonny Doon, California and recorded a self-titled EP with Nick's brother Nathan, which was subsequently self-released on CD-R. In 2006 Nick, Colin, Mayhaw and Jeff recorded this debut full-length at Sidecar Studios in Portland, before bringing on Nathan as an official member that spring. The band are touring the US with The Shins this autumn
'The Shaky Hands' feels like a classic debut, almost as though it's following an invisible lineage of great US debuts (from The Feelies "Crazy Rhythms through R.E.M's "Murmur" to Neutral Milk Hotel's "In The Aeroplane Over The Sea) and, like these bands, they come fully-formed and with a singular voice, in the case of The Shaky Hands this voice belongs to main songwriter Nick Delffs. As it floats restlessly through the scales, one minute wide-eyed and soulful, the next with a flat, resignation it's the type of charismatic, identifiable voice that doesn't always need to hit the right note to strike a chord in the listener. All of which wouldn't count for much if the songs weren't so damn good.
And they are, from metronomic opener, 'Whales Sing' and its winning approximation of Otis Redding's 'I Can't turn You Loose' right through to the handclaps and good vibes of closer 'Summer Life'. Single, The Sleepless with its staccato verses and effervescent chorus could be a long lost classic Britpop single, whilst Why and How Come, with its Byrds-like arpeggio guitars and flailing drums will, for those with a long enough memory, bring recollections of great lost 80's American bands like Let's Active or The Dream Syndicate. And though the up-tempo numbers are the ones that will initially stick inside your head it's perhaps the slower songs that will define this record. There's a striking, mystical beauty to songs like, "Another World Pt 1 & 2" and "The Clapping Song", so much so that when Delfs intones "Well I've been searching a long time for a heart that could beat with mine, I think I've found it", on the latter, as the key turns from major to minor you may find your world becomes momentarily warmer.
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