Review Text
Warm Fuzzies, the latest from The Shake Ups, is a collection of "lost" California sessions tracked at the band's own Mystery Riff Studios and dedicated to their friends and fans on the west coast. It is the band's third full-length release, and fourth overall from indie imprint Gelatinous Productions. Unlike prior albums, Warm Fuzzies was made in brief bursts of creativity between other projects. It marks the first SHAKE UPS release to have been written in it's entirety by vocalist/guitarist Patrick O'Connor. The disc stays an elusive course between pristine power-pop and off-the-cuff guitar rock, taking inspiration from Matthew Sweet's acclaimed 1991 disc, Girlfriend. The music encompasses rootsy alternative rock ("Cut Me Down"), power-pop ("As You Were," "Prom Night Disaster"), surf ("Behind the Curtain"), acoustic balladry ("Smile Time") and edgy guitar jams ("Deathwish"). Warm Fuzzies is another notch in the belt of a band that has come to be known as a primary force in the independent music community. As stated in Reviewer Magazine, "The Shake Ups take their inspirations and throw 'em in a blender. The result is something new, something fresh and something all their own."
