Shearling - "Don't Look at Me the Way a Dog Might Look at Your Leg" CD

Shearling returns with the first release since their monolithic 2025 debut “Motherfucker, I am Both: ‘Amen’ and ‘Hallelujah’... ” Arriving in the form of a (for them) concise EP, the band has stressed that “Don’t Look At Me The Way A Dog Might Look At Your Leg” is not the promised sister-record follow up to “Motherfucker”. Rather, “Don’t Look…” is a step adjacent, the bombastic horror and starlit beauty of their debut compacted into what can reasonably be called “songs”.

While the poetic nuance and eclectic instrumentation remain, their humanity and tradition seem to be emphasized. Songs like “Believe Me (Dust)” and “Your Reward” begin in Americana-inflected elegance and, uncharacteristically, do not stray from their pastoral harmony. Not to imply Shearling might now be sung around a campfire: the collagist, cut-and-paste freak-outs of “Motherfucker” are here as well, albeit juxtaposed against acoustic instruments and hip hop inspired samples rather than the band’s previous walls of guitar noise. Frontman Alexander Gregory Kent’s vocals, while no less threatening, are hushed and inward, a kind of introspection reflected in the lyrics. Kent’s signature blend of the cosmic and personal is front and center in the mix, as themes of morals and judgement, accompanied by allusions to previous work, further construct Shearling’s expanding mythos. The music and lyrics share an earthly surrender here; this is the most tangible Kent has been on record to date. “Don’t Look…” feels like a release designed to subvert expectations, raising further questions about what to anticipate with the inevitable full length follow up to “Motherfucker”. 

Track List: 

1. Three Pebbles (Saltlick)
2. Believe Me (Dust)
3. Surely You Know By Now
4. Young Man Idaho
5. Your Reward

Release Date: July 31, 2026