Shark Toys
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Shark Toys

Los Angeles, California, United States | SELF

Los Angeles, California, United States | SELF
Band Pop Punk

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This band has not uploaded any videos
This band has not uploaded any videos

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"Stuff We Like!"

... GOOD TUNES. I could see the title track going on a mixtape 'cause that little organ riff is burrowing its way into my brain, and I'm a sucker for the jangle. Shark Toys, you've warmed my cold blooded heart. - Insound


"7" Reviews"

... Driven by gal-n-guy dynamics (Daniel on guit/vox and Rina on keys/vox) and joined by various other musicians when needed (these recordings feature Greg Ashley on drums as well as on the mixing board, and I hear they have a 4-piece live line-up), it's intimate and simplistic pop with a post-punk cleanliness to it while maintaining some hooks as well. The keyboards are almost undetectable at times and the layering of other sounds (a cello or violin, multiple guitar/bass tracks, odd key jingles) make for some deceptively deep tracks. "Stayed Up" is cute garage-pop about listening to records and love, "Library" has a jolly UK-DIY feel to it, "What To Do" recalls desperate art-punk moves and "Rainfall" is quirky Flying Nun inflected indie pop. I got a lot more out of Shark Toys than I expected, as they exhibit more character than other bands of this ilk. Band name reminds me of Tronics and so do the sounds at brief moments. - Terminal Boredom


"The Singles Collection - Shark Toys"

We end on a high note this week with Californian troupe Shark Toys' 4-song Stayed Up EP on the upstart Felter Skelter Records. Produced by Greg Ashley at The Creamery, there's a rambunctious, ramshackle exuberance in the Toys' brand of pop - it's deceptively simple and comes smeared with bubbling psych undertones and hints of '80s UK synth-wave. Of the four songs here, "Library" may very well be the best in show; a certifiable slacker anthem built upon an insistent strum and eerie keyboard patterns. Elsewhere, second standout "What to Do" is a prime slice of rumbling anti-pop with a deadpan vocal harrumph and sunburst melodies fighting through layers of skittering guitar grit. Probably best to go and git you some at the label's site before they disappear forever into the murky waters from whence they came. - Impose


"the Homosexuals, Silver Apples, Shark Toys @ the Echo"

"Never let it be said the Homosexuals can’t pick their support, as newbies Shark Toys came as a blistering revelation. A synth/guitar twosome but recently bulked to standard rockband size by addition of a bass/drummer duo sporting near-identical pornstar tashes, they laid it on in the timeless staccato lunge of self-confessed influence Black
Randy & the Metrosquad." - Ron Garmon - LA Record


Discography

Singles:

Stayed Up 7" - Felter Skelter (2010)
split cassingle (w/ Plasma Centre) - Scotch Tapes (2011)
TBA 7" - Mt. St. Mtn (TBA)

Albums:

Shark Toys LP - Dead Beat (2013)

Compilation Appearances:

Under the Covers Vol. 2 (A Tribute to Peter Case, Paul Collins, and Jack Lee of the Nerves) -Volar / I Hate Rock N Roll (2010)

Photos

Bio

Shark Toys are a post-punk band from Los Angeles, CA.

2008-present.

Shark Toys were founded in 2008 by Danny (guitar, vocals) and Rina (keyboard, vocals) based on a shared love of bands like Beat Happening, Desperate Bicycles, Tronics, the Vaselines, and Clinic. Through many twists and turns the band now included Michael (bass, vocals) and Emanuel (drums). They released their debut LP (recorded by Monty Buckles of Lamps) on Dead Beat Record in January 2013.

Since their formation in 2008, the band has shared the stage with Ty Segall, Calvin Johnson, Silver Apples, Parquet Courts, the Spits, Protomartyr, the Intelligence, the Urinals, and many others.