The Shackeltons

The Shackeltons are a post-punk [Mary for Certain, [http://www.threeimaginarygirls.com/recordreview/2007oct/theshackeltons The Shackeltons —The Shackeltons] (album review), 3 Imaginary Girls, January 25, 2008. Accessed online 2 September 2008.] Tony Sclafani, [http://expressnightout.com/content/2008/01/rise_above_the_shackeltons.php Rise Above: The Shackeltons] , "Washington Post" Express Night Out, January 28, 2008. Accessed online 2 September 2008.] band from Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. Despite the spelling, they are named after the arctic explorer Ernest Shackleton.

They got some of their first non-local attention from Seattle, Washington radio station KEXP. That led to playing several major cities, and also to a contract with Seattle's Loveless Records. They received favorable write-ups in "Spin" and "Rolling Stone" and appeared at SXSW in Austin, Texas. Their self-titled Loveless debut was released January 29, 2008.

History

According to the band's own site, the band got together in June 2004 and began performing publicly in September. They recorded a 5-song EP at a local church with Michael Mateer as recording engineer. This netted them an opportunity to play the basement of New York City's Knitting Factory. They met Brooklyn based instrumental band Skeletonbreath, who joined them for numerous shows in a Chambersburg Homeless Shelter warehouse. [http://www.theshackeltons.com/bio_info.php The Happenings] (band bio), [http://www.theshackeltons.com/main/ Official site] . Accessed online 2 September 2008.]

In March 2005 the Shackeltons played a live radio broadcast on WEEO-FM, at that time "103.7 the Revolution". The 9-song session netted six tracks for their second release. In October 2005, they returned with Mateer to the same church where they had recorded their first EP, to do a full-length 10-song CD "Red"; the song "Yellow Cadillac" brought them to the attention of Chris Walla of Death Cab for Cutie. In December, with a slightly new lineup (Justin McDaniel had replaced older brother Josh McDaniel on bass and 14-year-old Sean Hallock had replaced Jonathan Slick on drums) they recorded a live show in Pittsburgh.

In spring of 2006, the band tried (and failed) to gain the attention of several New York labels. Meanwhile, "Red" had gained the attention of Seattle station KEXP. In November of that year, during CMJ's annual New York festival, the Shackeltons played a live session on KEXP and a performance at New York's Sin-e. These led to them being signed to Seattle's Loveless Records. Meanwhile, a few months earlier, they had recorded another EP—the "Creme EP"—with Mateer.

In March 2007 the Shackeltons played at Neumos in Seattle to an audience of nearly 1,000, and headed for Los Angeles to record for Loveless with producers Sam Jones and Tom Biller.

As that CD circulated before its January 29, 2008 release date, the band continued to gain notice. In November 2007 they became a Myspace feature band for a week, averaging 15,000 plays a day during that time. They were "Spin"'s featured artist of the day on January 18, 2008, [ [http://www.spin.com/articles/shackeltons Artist of the Day: The Shackeltons] , "Spin" online. Accessed online 2 September 2008. The [http://www.theshackeltons.com/bio_info.php band's self-published bio page] , accessed online 2 September 2008, says this occurred on December 4, 2007.] and on December 11, 2007 "Rolling Stone"'s Rock & Roll Daily blog described them as "brilliant". [ [http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2008/01/30/breaking-artist-the-shackeltons/ Breaking Artist: The Shackeltons] , "Rolling Stone" online, January 30, 2008. Accessed online 2 September 2008.]

Members

* Mark Redding (vocals)
* Eric Fisak (guitar)
* Dan Schuchman (guitar)
* Josh McDaniel (bass through "Red" in late 2005)
* Jonathan Slick (drums through "Red" in late 2005)
* Justin McDaniel (bass since late 2005)
* Sean Hallock (drums since late 2005): Source for members and dates:

Discography

* "Five Army" (EP, self-released, 2005)
* "Live on 103.7" (self-released, 2005)
* "Red" (self-released, 2005)
* "Live in Pittsburg" (self-released, 2006)
* "Green" (EP, self-released, 2006)
* "Creme EP" (EP, self-released, 2006)
* "Your Movement" on "Live at KEXP Volume Three" (2007) [ [http://www.discogs.com/release/1235741 "Live at KEXP Volume Three"] (track list and other details), Discogs. Accessed online 2 September 2008.]
* "The Shackeltons" - Loveless Records (2008):Sources for discography: [Except as noted, discography based on [http://www.sonicbids.com/epk/epk.aspx?epk_id=107632&poll_id=&name=&skin_id=&submission_id=&lv=1 The Shackeltons - Bio] , Sonicbids. Accessed online 2 September 2008. Confirmed on most points by [http://www.theshackeltons.com/bio_info.php The Happenings] (band bio), [http://www.theshackeltons.com/main/ Official site] . Accessed online 2 September 2008.]

Notes

External links

* [http://www.theshackeltons.com/main/ Official site]
* [http://www.kexp.org/aspnet_client/KEXPViewMediaGroup.aspx?rID=16126&pID=528&fID=4030&artist=SZ Live broadcast on KEXP] March 9, 2007.
* [http://www.kexp.org/aspnet_client/KEXPViewMediaGroup.aspx?rID=25845&pID=528&fID=4030&artist=SZ Live broadcast on KEXP] April 10, 2008