SHAW'S TRAILER PARK

Self-titled debut album by West Sussex-based Garage/Psych aggregation Shaw’s Trailer Park, recorded last year when the band had yet to tread the boards. Ian Canty writes…

Garage Punk is an unbeatable sound when done right, but it can be a little on the limited side. After all, you can only rehash Steppin’ Stone so many times. This conundrum is something that five piece Shaw’s Trailer Park meet head on during the course of their self-titled debut LP. The band came together in the final months of 2021, with leading light Tim Sanpher joined in the line up by guitarist Simon Smith, a rhythm section of Andy Fraser and Mark Wilson plus singer Donna Butler, who also chips in at times with percussion and sax. Tim was working with other bands but wanted to establish STP, named after the place he spent his formative years, as a vehicle for his own vision.

Before they had even played a gig this LP was already in the can, recorded at Brighton Road Studios during late 2022. It was taped as merely a guide prior to live performances, though after listening back to the tape Shaw’s Trailer Park felt it captured all they were about in fine style, so here it is as their first long player. The album is set in motion by the edgy, dirty thrust of Don’t Do That, where Stooges-style guitar mayhem is spliced to a relentless Motorik rhythm. Its catchy sort of strangeness is very appealling and this is immediately followed by the jangly Psych chill of Crash Landing, a different but equally intoxicating brew.

Sun Device then thunders further towards a kind of heavily mutated, Psychedelic Rockabilly sound, with the next number Rainbow Man’s solid fuzz buzz initially having a similar groove to The Fall’s Jawbone And The Air Rifle. That’s not a bad thing to evoke, but it soon develops into its own unstoppable right, where Tim and Donna’s vocals combine to endow the tune with a ghostly frisson as guitar and drums grind admirably ever onwards. Then we come to She’s Alright, probably the most “Pop” tune on the album really but still satisfying, with the chug of the bouncy rhythm cut with incendiary bursts of freaky guitar.

At this point it is only right to recognise the sterling bass work that always underpins the more upfront action on the Shaw’s Trailer Parker album, track number six entitled Memory being a case in point itself. Restraint comes next and lives up to its name a tad, it is given a slower but still driving pulse. This allows STP to show the subtlety that they are more than capable of, with the drop out to just bass and drums highlighting both the engine room of the band and the cool serenity at the heart of this number. The album ends with Snakegirl, which announces itself with in a fuzzy blur of spiralling sound and then continues by forming into in an entrancing, hypnotic Blues/Garage-type jam.

What Shaw’s Trailer Park achieve on this collection is an addictive and exuberant take on modern Garage Rock. But they also offer far more than that, flying off in other interesting directions. They imbue what they do with a solid purpose and a true sense of adventure, on what is a convincing first selection box. As this record was completed before any live shows had taken place, one can only wonder what they can offer after honing their craft in that arena. An impressive and highly enjoyable set that makes one want to keep a keen eye on what Shaw’s Trailer Park do next.