CD Review: WVTS - ‘Dirty Versions’
By Sam Bishop
We Versus the Shark
“Dirty Versions”
Hello Sir Records
As the warmly distorted opening chord slowly rings out on “Hello Blood,” the opening track of We Versus the Shark’s latest offering, “Dirty Versions,” so also ends the most accessible portion of the record. The 11-song tumult that follows is an awe and obscenity inspiring tour-de-force - very few printable words can succinctly describe the immediate emotional response to the glorious noise which WVTS is transmitting.
Billed as their attempt to capture the raw, “too-loud house party element” of their live show on tape, “Dirty Versions” was recorded over two days of live tracking with minimal overdubs. Theirs was a successful venture, as “Dirty Versions” doesn’t merely stream from one’s speakers or earphones; it explodes. Loud, hyper-energetic and often non-repeating, the songs of “Dirty Versions” are complex in an almost Zappa-ish fashion, encouraging repeated listens just to make sense of it from song to song and as a larger piece of work.
It is band lore that members of WVTS formed out of a shared appreciation for DC punk acts like Fugazi, Dismemberment Plan and Q and Not U. Well, they do their forebears proud on “Dirty Versions.” If history is kind, future bands will form out of a mutual appreciation for We Versus The Shark.