Shuvel is a band I heard about recently that I happened to be fortunate enough to catch before the after-midnight Agrokulcher set at the Roxy on Wednesday night. The band is made up of five guys from Wichita, KS that hold up the rap metal end of things with the best of them and, seemingly, can’t be stopped. They have captured the interest of the Interscope label and lucky for us, Shuvel is now based in the Chino Hills, CA area. From the looks of it, Los Angeles is going to be getting a regular dose of what they deliver.
Although the club wasn’t packed full of people as it usually is on most nights, due to a long-awaited System of A Down performance being held a block away, several people managed to filter in to support Shuvel’s set; and it was well worth seeing. The small but still energetic audience was welcomed by the confident vocal stylings of Isaac Ayala and Jeff Hollinger. They both menaced and dominated the stage and got sweaty enough while doing it to start peeling off the layers and keep on getting down. Ryan Stuber (guitar) and Carlos Sandoval (bass) were the pillars of rap-influenced crunch on either side of the stage while Jeff’s brother, Kyle Hollinger banged out the backbeats on the drums.
The band performed tracks from their 5-song demo and other material with well-built and vigorous presence. Having been compared to the likes of Limp Bizkit (only louder), Shuvel seem to be pounding out the stuff that people want when they want it funky and heavy. I’d stay on the look out for them. They’re young, they’re hungry and when you’ve got those qualities inside of you as musicians, the possibilities are virtually limitless.
You can check out the Shuvel website at www.shuvel.com and keep your eyes open for upcoming shows in your area!
Lesa Pence
