The press release calls it a comeback. That’s not quite right. Comebacks imply something was finished. American Sharks — the Austin three-piece of Roky Moon, Nick Cornetti, and Aaron Echegaray — never really stopped. They just went quiet for a while after touring extensively behind their 2013 self-titled debut and the follow-up 11:11 on BMG. Now Not Dead Yet arrives on April 17th via Permanent Teeth, and it lands with a guest list that turns a solid stoner-punk record into something considerably more interesting.
The Company They Keep
This is the actual story of this album: Moon called in favours from some of the most respected names in heavy rock, and they showed up. Mike Derks of GWAR plays lead guitar on “Bang Yer Head”. Zach Blair of Rise Against appears on “The Machine”. Kyle Shutt of The Sword contributes to “Sunny Sunday”. David Sullivan of Red Fang handles “Flowers For The Dead”. That’s not a feature list assembled for marketing purposes — those are working musicians who don’t lend their names to things they don’t believe in.
What it signals, before you’ve heard a note, is that Not Dead Yet has earned respect from within the scene. The kind that doesn’t come from press campaigns.
What’s Available
Only one track is streaming ahead of release: “Going Insane”, which runs just over three minutes and wastes none of them. The riff arrives immediately, a thick mid-paced chug that opens into a chorus with enough melodic momentum to justify the Weezer comparison Moon has made himself. The lyrics circle around disorientation and lost time — “I feel I’m losing myself / I’m losing time / I’m crashing out now” — delivered with the kind of conviction that doesn’t need to be subtle because the music isn’t asking it to be.
It’s a statement of intent more than a centrepiece. At 152 BPM, fast enough to keep the pressure on without tipping into aggression. The guitar tone is almost entirely fuzz past the point of pitch — riffs felt as much as heard, the low end arriving before the rest of the music does. No air above the upper register, which gives the whole thing that suffocating close-quarters density that marks the genre at its best.
What To Expect
The track listing suggests Not Dead Yet sequences deliberately — from the raw opener through to “They Want Peace”, which features Leo Lydon of Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol on both guitar and vocals, suggesting the album’s back half opens up somewhat. Moon producing everything himself keeps the sound coherent and unpolished in the right way. Mastered by Alberto De Icaza.
Nine tracks. A decade’s worth of momentum behind them. A guest list that doubles as a letter of recommendation from heavy rock’s most dependable lifers.
Worth watching closely when it drops.
“Going Insane” runs at a relentless 152 BPM, with guitars that have essentially stopped being guitars — the signal is fuzz past the point of pitch, a wall of texture you feel rather than hear as notes. The low end is immense, arriving before the rest of the music does. Almost no air above 5kHz, which seals the mix into something dense and close-quarters. The mastering is loud and flat — maximum impact at all times. For this kind of record, that’s a statement, not a flaw.
Standout tracks: Going Insane, Bang Yer Head, The Machine