shmu - Austin Town Hall

Premiere SHMU Prep Lead Me to the Glow

March 5, 2018 nathan.lankford Leave a comment

Sam Chown is one of the busier Austin musicians, but in the case of the single below, lets focus on his band SHMU. Through the year’s Sam’s been crafting songs in various studios and recording spaces, and that work seems to have let to the collage vibe that’s present on the new album Lead Me to the Glow. Layer upon layer of sound is textured atop Sam’s drum work, including horns and a layer of vocals from Carrie of Calliope Musicals. Interestingly, that texturing also leads to a smoother, almost R&B inflected sound, though fleshed out in a futuristic manner. Very few folks are crafting music quite as diverse as this; look for the LP to drop late this Summer.

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ATX Spotlight: Hear New Total Unicorn + Show @ Cheer Ups (10.30)

October 29, 2015 nathan.lankford Leave a comment

Not to be redundant, but Friday night looks like a hot night in town for show-goers. One of the things on our list is to hit up the SHMU album release at Cheer Ups. But, as equality is of great import, you should also know that Total Unicorn will be there too, celebrating the release of their Relaxation Tape. Listening to this tape, you’re likely to be surprised by the broad range of influences the group is using in their work. There’s musical nods to EDM, electronica, hip-hop and even touches of operatic indie rock; you’ve got to take your hats off to the group’s ability to incorporate so much into their music, yet still make it accessible to pop fans. It’s, dare I say, the “total” package, musically speaking. Be sure to check the group out tomorrow night, and don’t forget to grab yourself a tape.

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Austin Spotlight: SHMU Releases Chroma Key

February 7, 2014 nathan.lankford Leave a comment

Honestly, I don’t entirely know what to say in order to get you into Austin’s SHMU. There are these weird glitch elements thrown into a pot chocked full of bubbling pop melodies, creating this spectrum of musical experimentation pushed to its limits. It’s off-putting in a fascinating sense; you’re attracted to the oddity of the goings-on, yet you can’t identify precisely what it is you love. It’s like the Radio Dept. and Working for a Nuclear Free City got mashed up by the makers of Atari. Regardless of how you want to identify the music, I think you’ll all be better off today if you spent some time listening to the most recent release, Chroma Key. It’s a pleasing head-scratcher, to say the least.

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