Max Shakun
As summer approaches and our playlists beg to be filled with beach-ready tunes, Boston native Max Shakun is ready to dish out some sublime music in the form of his debut EP, Heatwave. The four songs are blissed-out, made for backyard barbecues and balmy evenings outdoors, all the while underpinned by Shakun’s skillful songwriting.
The guitarist and vocalist has been performing since he was young - he started learning piano in kindergarten, but later switched to guitar and joined his high school’s choir. For nearly the last decade, he’s performed with indie-folk outfit Parsonsfield, but once the pandemic hit, Shakun decided to switch gears and return to his own sonic roots. He left the band last summer and set out on a remote recording journey at his home studio.
The resulting EP Heatwave captures a feeling more than anything else. Shakun uses summer-y synth and funky guitar to craft a sunny, carefree vibe that you want to bask in for ages. He jokingly calls his sound “carbonated water indie,” and the EP is just as effervescent and refreshing to behold. Drummer and Producer of funk-soul band Miss Mojo and Shakun’s former camp friend (they knew each other when they were 13-years-old and both “had really long hair”) Mack Major worked as the producer on the EP, helping to shape the sound and providing all of the percussion on the tracks.
Shakun imagines people listening to Heatwave “at some kind of party” when we’re finally able to reunite with friends in a safe way. “I guess that's the classic answer these days,” he questions. But as he learned while writing this EP, sometimes just following the unedited flow of your thoughts works out. So this is the official invitation: pour yourself an oversized fruity drink, lay back, and let Heatwave wash over you.