2003's The Summer of the Shark was the first proper studio album released by Portastatic in more than five years (since Sap), although as you've read above, McCaughan has certainly busy in the interim. The Tropicalia obsession is not in evidence here; instead what you've got is one of the finest and most eclectic indie rock albums of the last few years. You want fuzzy guitar blasts, tremulous acousticism, low-key keyboard grooves, a fiesta of anachronistic instrumentation tied up with a crooked bow and passed off as pop song? You can have all that and more here. McCaughan hops styles like a Catholic school girl with a jumprope, but it's all coherent thanks to his steadfast mid-fi analog ethic, slightly flat and raspy vocal style, and quirkily poetic lyrical ability. The opener, "Oh Come Down," is a delicate, straightforward, (mostly) acoustic pop nugget featuring backing vocals from Sleater-Kinney's Janet Weiss. "Chesapeake" is a driving angsty rocker that explicitly deals with post-September 11 malaise. As a counterpoint, "Noisy Night" is the album's evening summer barbeque song, with a delightful wistful melody and typically whimsical McCaughan lyrics: "It's a noisy, noisy night, and you can't hear the kissing for the fights/ice in your gin, crickets on ten, underneath the yellow bug light." The album is filled with weird, great moments, with the soul-scraping, dreamy, oddly orchestrated "Swimming through Tires" another clear standout. Summer of the Shark came without a lot of fanfare, but that doesn't mean it's not great...check it out.