Fat, overdriven bass tones. Frenetic, dance-inducing drum beats. Melodic, video game-inspired keyboard lines. Spastic, punky vocals. Add it all up and you’ve got Codename: The Sharks! The local duo (made up of Trevor Friesen and Chad Kroeker) has made a name for itself in recent years with its live show, which it definitely lives up to on this self-titled debut EP. People who haven’t heard the band before may find the bass and vocals on the six-song “dance ‘n’ roll” disc to be abrasive at first, but the attention to melody and warm production are compelling and will soon win naysayers over. In the end, 17 minutes doesn’t seem like enough. Friesen and Kroeker have released a strong contender for best local EP of the year, and it will be exciting to watch where they go from here.

Published in Volume 64, Number 1 of The Uniter (September 3, 2009)