If, like me, you came of musical age listening to early 90s shoegaze, whenever the name ‘Shields’ appears on a new release, you take notice. Wounded Knees is the project of Kevin’s brother Jimi, along with former Mercury Rev flautist Suzanne Thorpe, and this 5 track slab of 10″ brown vinyl, housed in a hand screenprinted cover, is their debut release. Kevin Shields is credited with mixing the E.P., though production credits remain within the band. There is definitely a large element of the kind of white noise guitar fuzz associated with shoegaze underpinning the tracks. A much more overt 60s garage rock sound is the dominant feature, though, particularly in the melodic terrain explored vocally, accentuated by Jimi Shield’s husky vocal timbre. ‘Mainstream Hate School’ opens proceedings with two and a half minutes of 6/8 bluster, punctuated, as is the whole E.P. by very mellow, double-tracked flute interludes. ‘All Rise’ has a decidedly Stereoloab vibe, while side one closes with ‘Dirty’, a live recording featuring one J Mascis noodling over a much more drone based guitar workout. ‘Surf The Urge (To Explode)’ has a British feel to its 60s melodicism, a kind of Kinks melancholy, while the whole thing is rounded out with a sombre ‘Sonny Payne’ strolling up the pastoral-psychedelic path followed by many a late 60s Briton.
There’s nothing here that will change your life, but it’s a strong release with a relatively diverse range of pieces within its own established parameters. There’s pop hooks, some nice, grainy production and hints of glories both past and future. Now if only Jimi can talk Kevin into jumping over to the other side of that mixing desk…
Adrian Elmer
