Sharkorama is the solo vehicle of singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Cody Knauer, who says he “crafts earnest rock ‘n’ roll for slackers.”
Slackers take heed though. Knauer’s productivity is far more earnest than slack: Wicked Machine was built completely during a string of all-nighters Knauer pulled over the week between Christmas and New Year’s Eve in 2020.
“I wrote, performed, and produced Wicked Machine entirely in my unfinished Chicago basement,” Knauer explains. “I think the setting gives the album a raw, earnest quality to the tracks, and the tight window lends a sense of urgency.”
From sweet, sensitive acoustic folk-pop to full-on garage rock gusto, Sharkorama covers wide ranging yet cohesive territory in this 12-track offering and, yes, there is plenty of wry humour amongst Knauer’s hyperliterate lyrics.
From Labour Minister Shahine Robinson to reggae legend Frederick Toots Hibbert, dozens of notable Jamaicans passed on in 2020, a year which has made an impact we won t soon forget. It s no surprise that the novel coronavirus, which turned the world upside down during the year, was behind the deaths of a number of these personalities.
RIP to these luminaries and other Jamaicans we left behind this year. They will always live within our hearts.
Bob Andy
Reggae icon Bob Andy, one of Jamaica s most celebrated songwriters, died in March. Keith Bob Andy Anderson had reportedly been ailing for some time before he passed away.