It Could Happen to You!

Artist: The Candy Sharks
Release Date: March 25, 2013
Label: Independent


It's all happened before: a few independent high school kids decide that they like music, next these kids somehow become united through a love of all things rock and decide to start a band. The final step however, is not as straightforward. At this point the group either plays a couple dozen shows and slowly fizzles away, or they save up all of their (parents') money and record an album. Chicago, Illinois' The Candy Sharks are obviously the latter, and that definitely shows on the record. This is definitely a batch of songs made by kids; the clear purpose of the LP being to embody the teenage experience rather than make the next OK Computer. It Could Happen to You! has its fair share of mediocre moments, but nonetheless there are flashes of sloppy rock brilliance scattered throughout.

I'll start with the good. The Candy Sharks' debut begins with "Valhalla," an up-tempo number that bristles with an intensity that would have served the band well had it been kept up throughout the whole record. If not for vocalist Jack Hayden's energetic performance on the opener, there would be no reason to continue listening. The rest of the album's first half is forgettable, but it still retains a certain charm that few major acts can convey through their music. Later on the album comes "In the Greenhouse Garden", one of the most stylistically different tracks on the album. "Greenhouse" features celestial synthesized strings and an arpeggiated guitar line, topped off with a baritone croon from Hayden that gives the track an indie pop character as opposed to the sound of four kids hitting things in a garage that dominates the rest of the record. Album closer "Lightning Bug" is an innocent sounding track that would without a doubt have been an indie favorite had it been recorded by The Zombies in 1969. All of the classic musical staples being utilized in the track by way of clumsy falsetto vocals, squirming guitar lines, and gentle drumming make the album closer hard to forget. If there were a song on It Could Happen to You! for the Candy Sharks to re-record for a major label debut it would be "Lightning Bug."

While most of the Candy Sharks' debut is merely pleasant-enough garage mopping that wouldn't sound out of place on a Sub Pop compilation, there are undoubtably some promising moments. There is something to love for everyone on this record, from shoe-gaze to brit-pop ballads. Though it is not done on the professional level of other big acts, the endearing quality of an unknown group is hard to deny. In short: It Could Happen to You! is not only a catchy album title but features some catchy tunes, and considering the brevity of the record, it is definitely worth a listen.

-Matt Gill