Sharkey Barcus, the indie pop project helmed by talented local singer-songwriter Alex Ashbrook, has just released release BLIP! its third LP, on all digital streaming services.
Ashbrook says the concept of a “blip” dates back to 2012 when he broke his leg skateboarding.
“I had a very positive-minded physical therapist who liked to remind me that my recovery, which I think was something like four months in bed, was just a 'blip on my timeline' and that someday my brain would just forget it for me,” he says in an email.
When Covid-19 put in-person social gatherings on pause, Ashbrook experienced déjà vu.
“The act of staying inside, pausing life, feeling that dread really reminded me of when I broke my leg," he says. "That’s when I wrote the title track of the new record.”
With its swirling synths and rapid-fire vocals, the title track recalls Odelay-era Beck. Other highlights include the Beatles-esque ballad "Easy 2 Let Go" and the catchy horn-driven "Prof & Jefferson," a Steely Dan-like track replete with local references.
“I started to think of ‘blips’ as little pieces of life that fail to score folds in our brain, the bad things we want to forget, but also the good things we wish would have lasted longer,” says Ashbrook. “I hope to extend this term and these ideas to anyone out there feeling like the world is ending. It’s helpful to think of this past year as just a ‘blip’ and trust our brains will shed that anxiety and fear when it’s all over.”
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