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Shame - Food For Worms Review

Updated: Jun 8, 2023

Shame is one of the most celebrated post-punk bands to come out of South London in recent years, This 5 piece is known well for their 2018 release Songs Of Praise or their follow-up album Drunk Tank Pink which was seen as a more cerebral and complex in tone. Both of these albums were big hits with critics and fans which have quickly seen them reach legendary status in the UK indie scene

Now following up on that they're giving us Food For Worms which has been produced by Flood, who has previously worked on records with the likes of PJ Harvey, U2, and Nick Cave. Food For Worms is seen as a step in the right direction, diversifying and becoming more eclectic than ever to release some high-quality tracks for our little earworms.


Shame Food For Worms Album Cover

We just need to give compliments to the Shame Food For Worms album cover this is an amazing piece of artwork.




What You Should Know About The Food For Worms Album?

Shame has released a lot of tracks on Food For Worms that can be considered introspective. In the track ‘Orchid’, the gentle approach to music is accompanied by lyrics that can best be described as contemplative. Take for example the lines 'Every time I hold your hand, I feel something different.'.


Shame would see a hit in the song called 'Adderall'. This song was about watching helplessly as a friend starts popping pills, and eventually fades away. The song talks about people who are addicted to prescription drugs, and how this can affect their loved ones. The lead singer of Shame, Charlie Steen, has a gruff voice that lends itself spectacularly to the music. As a young British band, their music is empathetic, and also cathartic for many.


Food For Worms gave Shame a chance to express different levels of empathetic and cathartic tracks. To a standard and a way that they haven’t done before in their earlier work.

The Road To Food For Worms

Shame were only teenagers when they released their debut album Songs Of Praise, since then, the band has been evolving their own musical styles and growing with the music. Drunk Tank Pink had a much more pronounced Post-Punk sound. Whilst Food For Worms is leaning into this dark jazz vibe.

Reflecting on Drunk Tank Pink, Charlie Forbes would later go on to admit that they were trying to be too clever with the album. At this time, Shame was seen as a post-punk band. But Shame didn't really fit into that description. They had Songs that came with catchy choruses and had mainstream success in the UK. They were also not fond of the post-punk label themselves. Instead, Steen admitted that he was inspired by Bob Dylan and wanted to portray a certain gruffness with great storytelling.

What Makes Food For Worms Special?


The earnestness of the band resonates through 'Food For Worms' and let’s the abum stand on its own footing. This raw sound is also what helps to distinguish them as a band. The album was recorded live in the studio, in order to better capture the energy. The band wanted their music to sound the way it would sound live in a gig.


The songwriting in this album is one of the strongest of the group, to date. Food For Worms helps to nudge the band in a new direction and a strong one at that.


Listen to Shame Food For Worms


Conclusion

Food For Worms is an album that all Shame fans should listen to. This album enables the band to come out with the sound that their band would come to be known for. None of the band's original intensity is gone. Instead, it blends seamlessly with the new kind of music that Shame wants to create.


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