Shame – Cutthroat

Known for their oftentimes assured risk-taking, Shame might’ve taken it a step too far on Cutthroat. While abrasive in all the right ways, lead singer Charlie Steen attempts to adapt his monotone sing-speak across a diverse range of genre-bending tracks that conform to easy categorisation.

Coming off their more incisive yet exploratory third LP, Food for Worms, it seems out of character to hear them strive for blatant commercial appeal on the title track, which could pass for the polished scuzz rock Cage the Elephant is known for. Such attempts fare better on “Spartak,” which, borrowing from Fontaine D.C.’s more recent playbook, aims for heart-on-sleeve sentimentality.

It's a suitable lane for them to stick with if assembled with more cohesion, but instead, Shame opt to debase their already-proven post-punk. The repetitive refrain in “Cowards Around,” a shameless facsimile of Protomartyr if I’ve ever heard one, tacks on broad generalizations about social malaise that lack any specific insight. This can be frustrating when contrasted with the resonant message of “Nothing Better,” a propulsive rocker that does effectively make the point that we're all “too online.”

There are hints of Shame’s continuous evolution as songwriters. Take the muted, jagged menace lurking behind the austere “Packshot,” which builds into a powerful, guitar-driven crescendo. But for the most part, Cutthroat struggles at balancing that very fine line between accessibility and experimentation.

Cutthroat is out now via Dead Oceans.