When a band is able to capture the intense energy and atmosphere of a late-night live basement show and combine it with the careful precision of a band that sincerely knows who they are, a certain kind of magic takes place. With the release of their new EP, Course Correcting (out today, May 29th via Trash Casual Records), Brooklyn quartet Sharkswimmer does exactly that, delivering a body of work that feels like a massive leap forward.
The EP’s title track serves as the final centrepiece, and it wastes no time pulling you into its orbit. The first 20 seconds open with beautiful, chiming keys—a delicate, almost fragile intro that sets a deceptive calm not just for the song, but for the entire 4-track record. It’s a brief moment of suspension before the band abruptly shifts gears, breaking into a massive, driving guitar riff that hits right in the chest.
That sudden transition encapsulates what makes Sharkswimmer so compelling right now. They possess a rare knack for blending the aggressive, raw melodicism of 90s post-hardcore and punk with the earnest, heart-on-your-sleeve vulnerability of classic alternative emo. It’s a sonic tug-of-war where heavy, urgent instrumentation acts as the perfect vehicle for frontman Justin Buschardt’s lyricism, which navigates the heavy emotional fallout of divorce and heartbreak. The music is heavy, yes, but the hooks reach straight into your feelings, anchoring the sonic aggression to something deeply human.
Watch the Video for “Course Correcting”
To accompany the release, the band dropped a music video directed, shot, edited by, and starring Sydney Tate Bradford. The video leans into a grainy, vintage aesthetic—like looking through the lens of an old film camera yourself. It’s intimate, slightly weathered, and matches the DIY foundation that Sharkswimmer has continually championed.
Having previously teased the EP with tracks like the tense, paranoid “Meticulous Reach,” the full release of Course Correcting reveals a band operating at the peak of their collaborative powers. Working alongside producer Brian Dimeglio (Bartees Strange, Pinkshift) and mastering engineer Jon Markson (Drug Church, Koyo), the band has polished their rough edges without losing an ounce of their grit.
Across the four tracks – “Course Correcting,” “A Slight Shift In Tone,” “Meticulous Reach,” and “Niki” – Sharkswimmer avoids the easy traps of nostalgia. While you can certainly trace the lineage of Jade Tree records or the punchy alt-rock of the 2010s in their DNA, this isn’t a cheap imitation of the past. It’s a confident, vital, and incredibly honest record meant for the present.
Course Correcting is out now on all major platforms.
