5 Songs I Love w/ Sharkeologist

Following the release of their latest single, 'There Will Be Bread', Flex caught up with Seattle-based alternative outfit Sharkeologist to discover what influences their unique blend of indie, punk, gunge and pop stylings. If you enjoy Sharkeologist's picks, be sure to check out 'There Will Be Bread' at the end of the article.

1. Evgeny Kissin - Rachmaninoff's 3rd Piano Concerto

I am aware of how pretentious this choice may seem, but if I could have written any piece of music, it would be this. I wish I had the clarity of thought and the depth of vision to write something like this. The beginning of the second movement is the single musical moment that has made me cry more than any other in my life. I love crying when listening to music. This one tops the list because of it's beautiful melancholy, but I've also cried when listening to "Soulja Boy" out of pure joy and playfulness. So I'm all over the place.

2. Agriculture "Bodhidharma" Live @ The Fillmore

This is my favorite new song, and this is my favorite performance of it. The audience doesn't quite know what to make of such a jarring, arresting piece of music - and clearly the band is trying to sort out how they feel about that. They want to stun the audience, I think, but they also want to thrash and rock. There is a wonderful emotional tension in this song, and in this piece. I also wish I wrote this.

3. Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan - Sanson Ki Mala Pe Simron Mein

 I assume people may know this man, but if you don't, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan is one of the greatest singers ever to live. He sings qawwali, which is a kind of Pakistani devotional music. First heard about him when I heard a Jeff Buckley interview in which Jeff said he was his favorite singer. And I mean, come on, just listen to what this man and his group can do: gorgeous, transcendent. Hard to put into words how moved I feel when I hear his music. Sometimes it makes me feel like I was Pakistani in a previous life, grooving to music like this. I like the thought of that.

4. Nirvana - Teen Spirit (Top of the Pops 1991)

We sometimes forget that, underneath all the mythologizing and darkness, Kurt Cobain was a darkly hilarious guy. To sing his signature song this way, at the precise moment it was hitting its apex, is cinema to me. The story goes that Top of the Pops wanted him to sing it to a backing track, and for the band to play along with their own recording. Well, clearly Kurt didn't want to do that and made a mockery of the whole thing at the same time. It's funny and awkward, but it's also a subtle testament to how principled he was as an artist, and how little he managed to give a fuck about what people thought. I am sure, deep down, he craved the limelight and the praise as much as any of us, but the rebellious part of him would not be suppressed, and that inspires me every day. I hope I get the opportunity to butcher my own music on an international TV show someday!

5. Lauren Palmer Theme - Performed By Dutch National Orchestra

 Another utterly moving and nostalgic bit of art that I love. I loved "Twin Peaks," and the music was such an enormous part of that show's vibe. Angelo Badalamenti wrote a piece that somehow captures pure joy and unbridled grief and fathomless horror all at one. That is exactly how I want my band to sound - how I want our music to feel. We haven't gotten there yet, but I dearly hope we will.

Listen to Sharkeologist 'There Will Be Bread'

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