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The Shivers Download mp3 | Stream mp3
Anti-American, anti-sexual, antifolk antihero Keith Zarriello phones it in from his parents' house in Phoenix, AZ- which makes 'I Wish I Was Never Born' more than just a little unsettling. (You'll see.) Vocally, you might be reminded of Rufus Wainwright with a thick Bronx accent, but lyrically the two couldn't be more polar. As a writer of moving vignettes about intense alienation, Keith is truly in a league of his own. His disgust for modern society is total; his songs slimly self-effacing, but neither self-pitying nor self-congratulatory. Here's a sample from the aforementioned 'I Wish I Was Never Born':

"But I really can't complain, I guess / White skin on my face, and not a scar on my chest / And the only thing I can really cry for is that there's not enough love in the world / There ought be more / What's a boy to do but go fight a war and die? / I wish I was never born..."

There must be some optimism in there somewhere (it's shone through a lot more on the Shivers' recent albums). Probably the biggest complaint we receive is that the last two minutes of 'Who's Gonna Walk My Baby Home' got cut off. It's gone. We're sorry.

Nadav Carmel, BSR 06/10/2005

Songs

Half Invisible
Untitled
I Wish I Was Never Born
The Kids Are Coming Home From Work
The Ghetto
Who's Gonna Walk My Baby Home [cut off]

Links

TheShiversNYC.com The Shivers on MySpace The Shivers at Outer Borough Records
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