Sugar Shack
Shotgun For Two (Au-go-go)
by Marc Hirsh

originally published in the Public News, May 17, 1995

I've started making a list of things I don't like about the latest Sugar Shack album. A brief glance: the guitarists know lots of chords and don't know what to do with them. The singer not only sounds awful (not necessarily a handicap in this field) but can't carry a tune. The drummer only knows two tempos (fast and a bit faster). The band doesn't know how to end a song. The band doesn't know how to write a song.

Okay, that last one was too harsh. If these songs were subjected to reasonable treatment, they might amount to something. Hell, if they were finished, they might amount to something. "When Yer Not Doin' Me" and "Sonic Sally," although it pains me to admit it, start out strongly (or the closest thing to it, at least on this album). They don't have a chance, though. They both die under the heel of the ultra-garage production of the record. When the band and the singer sound like they're in different rooms, there's not a whole lot they can do to save a song.

You can feel the energy, though. Too many bands lose their edge completely in the studio, but Shotgun reeks of excitement. Unfortunately, it sounds like it was more fun for the band to record than it is for me to listen to it.

They've got a decent idea, though. While groups like Thee Headcoats and the Nuthins are looking to recreate mid-'60s garage rock, Sugar Shack wants to modernize it. The problem, shades of O. Henry, is that the producer's efforts to capture the garage spirit end up undermining the band's efforts to capture the garage spirit. Sacrificing clarity for feel hurt this album more than it helped.

And so we're left with a record that tries too hard on some levels, doesn't try hard enough on others and generally ends up a mess, all at the same time. I've accepted that the band isn't in control of all the shortcomings. But I also realize that they had final veto power over the final product and refused to use it.

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