Album Review

Cuddly Shark – The Road To Ugly

• 25th Jan 2013

Cuddly Shark are a talented three piece from the Scottish highlands who have made Glasgow their home. As well as having a superb band name, they have a good line in pop infused indie songs with great hooks and humorous lyrics. But they also have an unpretentious attitude that seems to say that they simply play the way they want to play. Yet I have a feeling that the spontaneous and, in places, hectic feel of the album is exactly what they have practiced hard to achieve.

The Road To Ugly is the band’s second album, coming after a 2009 self titled debut that received some excellent reviews. Colin Reid on guitar and vocals, Jason Sinclair on drums and Ruth Forsyth on bass guitar and vocals combine well together. The end result is a good collection of 12 songs, jammed into just 29 minutes that speeds by, and is basically damned good fun.

There are some decent tracks on The Road To Ugly. Overpriced is frantic with a great bass line to open, then a fuzzy guitar riff and a shouted chorus. My iPod Made Me Do it is probably the closest to a mainstream rock song and has a frenetic vibe to its vocals. And Pull The Finger Out features some great guitar work.

Body Mass Index, previously released as the title track of an EP, is probably the best song here. Again the bass opens the track, which tells of a lady killer who doesn’t meet with much success because “she says I’m attractive in the wrong direction”. The humour works very well and the fast paced song is delivered with real style, Reid’s pained vocals leaving the listener in a quandary about whether to sympathise with the protagonist or laugh at him.

Of the others, The Devil In You with its dark country air, stands out, as does the closing acoustic Local Hero, another with darker lyrics, this time sung with real feeling over a lo fi hum.

This isn’t the type of album that you will spend hours dissecting and looking for hidden meanings. Cuddly Shark are very good at getting their message across in a simple and straightforward manner, so it’s one to sit back and enjoy. It’s a good time sound and it works well.

Venue: The Road To Ugly
Support Band: Armellodie Records