Along with bands like American Nightmare, Panic or The Snobs, Shark Attack were one of the many bands that rediscovered the sound of early eighties American hardcore music around the beginning of the 21st century, playing in the vein of bands like Antidote, the Abused, Negative Approach or Urban Waste.
Shark Attack started in the fall of 2000. After they got a few songs together they recorded the songs for a demo. These songs also appeared on their first 7" record called Blood in the water, released in October 2000.
The band played their first show in November the same year and continued to play shows throughout the Northeast of the United States. The Boston area is also where the band comes from; only drummer Rich is living in the US on a green card.
Always enjoying shows in Boston, the band thinks their show in Boston with Close Call, Fit for Abuse and Cops and Robbers was their best. In their brief existence they played 25 shows, having many legendary hardcore tunes such as D.Y.S. City to City, Negative Approach Can’t Tell No One and Agnostic Front Friend or Foe as cover songs in their live set. Shark attack also played a show opening for Agnostic Front in Toronto, Canada.
When the band called it quits in June 2001, there were many unfulfilled goals, including a tour in Europe and the American west coast, and recording a 12“ record. The reason for ending Shark Attack was that certain band members were not into doing the band as they were when they started. Just keeping the band up because they were getting a good response was, in the eyes of the band members, the wrong way. The last show took place on June 8th 2001; other bands playing were two big names in hardcore music: the Bad Brains and the Cro-Mags.
The band had recorded a five-song demo with songs that were supposed to be on their full length album, which never was released. Those songs can be found on a discography CD, on Reflections Records from the Netherlands. Other than that, their 7" is still available.
Band members were Matt Summers (vocals), Zach attack (bass), Euro-Boy (drums) and Smythe (guitar). All of them are still active in the music scene and are busy playing with new bands. Smythe moved to California and is working on a new band, Rich a.k.a. Euro-Boy is starting a band called Soldiers of Fortune (together with a guy who used to be Shark Attacks’s roadie), and Matt Summers has been working on a new band called The Noise together with Zach.
Available records:
