The Poly Shores

Calgary scores in overtime again with this heartstopping, femme-sung, afterpunk EP which could bust in flailing among the songs of the Repo Man soundtrack and come out the winner. Nearly as relentless as Duchess Says, frantic as Joy Division, but way easier to hear the words, these two songs completely OWN YOUR EARS as they freak-speed through the wastelands. The lyrics are exhaustingly cool, especially when doubled up: “You want to sell it off, we keep on playing, cuz we ain’t got no value. We got no money, we gotta steal, we gotta kill for what we got.” - See Magazine

Posted on February 19, 2011 by arguejob

The Poly Shores new self titled record opens to disorienting funnels of yeah yeahs and moaning guitars. From there we get into a very hip album with a tendency towards the capital c Cool at every turn. The instruments are delightfully lazy, the bass line is cloaked in wayfarers, the vocals are strung out, this whole thing is so Williamsburg that you’ll be surprised and excited it’s oozing off of our neighbourly twin city! Calgary’s Poly Shores. Skip ahead to “Summer #9? and you have a seriously twanged out punk jam with a disenchanted dead pan croon on the hook. Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah! If you usually get into this kind of stuff, which I usually don’t, then you should love this, cause I think it’s pretty great. - ARGUE JOB

Published May 6, 2010 by Dane Swanson in Music Features

Breathe a sigh of relief, kids. Exams are done, bikes are coming out of the shed and the snow is (almost) gone. You’ve been very well-behaved so far and done what the boss man says, but Dane’s worried that with all the hard work you’ve put in, you may have forgotten how to get weird. If you weren’t able to make it to Wyrd Fest last weekend at the No. 1 Legion to jump-start your freakiness, don’t fret — the Poly Shores can show you a thing or two. Emerging from the basement just this past November with the best local band name since Space Rabies, the experimental pop four-piece combines the hyperactive garage rock of Deathbed Baby (two members of which are now in the Shores) and the playfulness of upcoming Sled Island attendees Deerhoof, with post-punk outsider tendencies. Though its approach is unconventional, pairing tightly executed guitar and bass lines with singer Erin Jenkins’s bizarre, unhinged yelp, guitarist and bassist Ben Middleton explains that it’s all in the name of fun. “I definitely think as a band we approach everything we do with a grain of salt,” he says. “We don’t want to bust each other’s chops. We all have equal grounds when it comes to writing and the creative process, so [it’s about] not putting too much of yourself in it, just trying to have fun and write fun music.” The band has already garnered some attention from provincial press for its self-released EP, and made quite a splash at the final Factory Party in March, so don’t be surprised if it kicks up a ton of dust at Broken City with Edmonton garage rock head-smashers The Famines this Saturday, May 8. Before you start quoting Encino Man, mark down May 7 on your calendar. Calgary’s wittiest hardcore three-piece, and the ones responsible for a Justin Bieber/Black Flag mash-up T-shirt that recently made waves in the blog world, Grown Ups will headline a noisy set at Local Library. The scrappy lo-fi pop of new, young two-piece Faux Fur should not be missed, nor should Grown Ups offshoot Weird Shits or the bedroom folk of ex-Beija Flor singer Stephen van Kampen’s project Savk. Next on the weirdo takeover of Calgary, the East Village Seafood Market will find itself invaded on Friday, May 14 as Bikeland, Hunter-Gatherer and Manchild perform to raise some cash for the Heart and Stroke Foundation. It is the first-ever live show at the market, so who knows what kind of antics might ensue. Do yourself a favour and pick up Bikeland’s fantastic new cassette of off-kilter lo-fi rock, JetFighter, while you’re there. Also on May 14, Local Library will open its doors once more for an eclectic lineup of heartfelt pop, lead by Vancouver’s Olenka and the Autumn Lovers. Under-rated Sonic Youth-influenced indie rock four-piece Kindergarden will play, along with the ongoing collaborative project from dark folk nightingale Laura Leif, Secret Brothers, the sonic manipulations of woodsy three-piece Raleigh and the sincere jams of No You Hang Up. The following night, The Marquee Room will temporarily transform into a sand bar to set the scene for an evening of surf-rock and beach-tinged country-rock. Acclaimed songwriter Chantal Vitalis’s fun-lovin five-piece The Lovebullies will ride the gnarliest wave, with the whammy-bar stylings of The Bownesians and the alt-country of The Ruminants to get things properly soaked. To complete your weirdo makeover, head back to The Marquee Room on May 22 for one of the most innovative and out-there musicians in the city, drummer Eric Hamelin, and his very experimental jazz-noise trio No More Shapes. The group is officially celebrating the recent release of its album, Creesus Crisis, which is already raising some eyebrows stateside, and with excellent reason — it’s one of the most interesting releases to ever come out of Calgary. The night will also feature a set from Free Nude Celebs and Blanket, a mysterious collaboration between Chad Van Gaalen and the dream team of local outsider-music drummer Chris Dadge (of free-jazz series Bug Incision) and bassist Scott Munro. - FFWD

From the biodome of Jesse Locke:
Not since the mercifully short-lived local music in-joke Lorrie Matheson’s Cock has Calgary had a band name as ludicrous as The Poly Shores. All the same, don’t be fooled by their fondness for purple sticky punch as these scrappy, spazzy berzerkers mean their own brand of business. Pitched somewhere between Ponytail, Be Your Own Pet and Toni Basil their debut two-song blast is now available on CD and glorious cassingle. Listen for the stone cold funky basslines, shark-toothed guitars and smart/stupid sloganistic lyrics like “guns don’t kill people, love kills people…” Wheez the juice! - Weird Canda