The Shake

The Shake are a young and scrappy guitar quartet with a solid grounding in hooks and harmonies. Both their sound and their look are akin to the first wave of American power pop bands that started appearing in the late '70s: the Pop, the Quick, Paul Collins' Beat, the Knack, and other skinny-tie bands with short sharp shocks for names, filtered through the influences of Little Steven's Underground Garage. The group was formed in New York City in the summer of 2005 by high-school pals Jon Merkin (lead vocals and rhythm guitar) and Eliad Shapiro (lead guitar, keyboards, and backing vocals), adding bassist and backing vocalist Jeremy Stein and drummer Andrew McNellis. The Shake self-released their debut album, Kick It, on the quartet's own Unicycle label in late 2006. ~ Stewart Mason, Rovi