PLANET CHOCKO – art/music/movies/beyond » Sharkmuffin and Janet LaBelle played Iris Records

Sharkmuffin and Janet LaBelle played Iris Records

March 18th, 2015 by chocko

Iris Records (114 Brunswick St, Jersey City, NJ)

Chocko and Mr. C are a little late to the game when it comes to checking out in-stores at Iris Records in Jersey City. Last weekend we were curious to see how Sharkmuffin and Janet LaBelle, plus vinyl connoisseurs were going to even fit into the already cramped aisles of Iris Records. So, we got there a little after 7 pm last Saturday and watched as a table of 12″ house records got shoved a couple feet towards the back of the store, guitars get plugged into a couple towering speakers and instant stage!
Janet LaBelle at Iris Records

First up, was the lovely chanteuse straight outta New Jersey (now residing in Brooklyn), Janet LaBelle. Great, soothing pop songs while playing the ukulele and sometimes switching up to an acoustic guitar. She shared stories in between songs about her recent vinyl purchases and songs she’s been obsessing over including Astrud Gilberto’s cover of The Loving Spoonful’s “You Didn’t Have To Be So Nice” which Janet covered and darn, I wish I recorded it. It sounded sweet. I’m hoping she plays it again at her next show which will be on Thursday, March 19 at The Living Room at their new location 134 Metropolitan Avenue in Brooklyn. I’m sure she’ll have some CDs for sale so, definitely go and support live music!
Natalie of Sharkmuffin and Janet (former Sharkmuffin drummer)

I’ve seen Sharkmuffin before, so I knew what to expect but wasn’t too sure how a show without reverb, drums and amps was going to play out. If you have never heard the Brooklyn trio before, they sound gritty and punk with some garage and pop sprinkled in. If Karen O. of the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s joined the Dum Dum Girls and they played Misfits songs…that’s Sharkmuffin. Their first song was was a train wreck! Maybe too much Pabst, but the guitar and bass were definitely out of tune. Thankfully, they stopped after their first song to tune their instruments then it was full steam ahead for Tarra Theissen (guitar and vocals) and Natalie Kirch (bass and backup vocals)! They flipped the script when closing out their set with a gentle cover of Velvet Underground’s “After Hours.” On the way out, I picked up the 7″ singles they had for sale…their debut single and their newest 7″ titled “1097” which was named after the Jersey Shore summer home bassist Natalie lost at sea thanks to Hurricane Sandy. Sharkmuffin are presently in the middle of a tour which will take them through the Southern states to SXSW, the Midwest and back to Brooklyn by the end of March. Check ’em out at a venue near you!
Sharkmuffin at Iris Records