Wednesday, August 10, 2022

The 1982 Listening Post - Sharks - Altar Ego

Sharks - Altar Ego 


1982 Housekeeping

Sharks

Altar Ego

Genre: Glam

2.25 out of 5





Rick Czerny, legend has it, was one of Axl Rose’s influence, at least as far as stage presence went. 

Sharks became Shark Island and they were legend on the Sunset Strip. 

This is a VERY early collection of what sound like demos. Given their reputation I had high hopes but, what we get here is a poorly mixed, muddy set of glam tracks that want to have more heft than they do. So, to me, this sounds like a band with ideas of what they want to sound like but unable to execute. The energy behind the vacuous “Rock Kids” suggests what they were hoping to be but they haven’t quite figured out how to update the 70s glam sound to capture the imagination of would-be fans in 82. 


Is this the nascent sound of hair metal? It’s right on the heels of Crue’s first foray so I imagine they all knew and played with each other. Spencer Sercombe

has chops. I’m surprised I never heard of him based on this band’s pedigree. Just like Jimmy and Randy, they give Spencer his shot at an instrumental and its…boring. 


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbbna60BIMk&list=RDgbbna60BIMk&start_radio=1&t=5s

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