Reading and Leeds: Lock Up line-up released
Posted by jamie on Apr 17, 2012
Announcing the line-up for the Lock-Up Stage has improved this year’s Reading and Leeds festivals no end.
Highlights ought to be:
- Social Distortion and Random Hand (Reading on Friday, Leeds on Sunday)
- The Skints, Me First and the Gimme Gimmes and Less Than Jake (Leeds on Friday, Reading on Sunday)
You can get tickets here.
The Skints: Part & Parcel - reviewed
Posted by jamie on Mar 26, 2012
The Skints
Part & Parcel – Bomber Music, 2012
21st March, 2012
Jamie
As the Skints wowed another spellbound, sweaty room, I could only nod, when one man leaned over to whisper in to my ear: “these guys just get better and better”.
It wasn’t just that it was so succinctly put: you couldn’t argue with the words, but the tone, conveying joy and disbelief at the sheer quality of what we were witnessing, and the speed at which the Skints’ star was on the rise. They were getting so much better, so fast, that it actually was difficult to comprehend.
That night at the Highbury Garage was in 2009 (!) and, since then, the Skints have just gone on getting better and better as they get bigger and bigger.
Ahead of its official release on 9th April, their second record, is, in all probability, the single most anticipated reggae album in the UK right now, and, to meet burgeoning expectation, had to be something special.
Part & Parcel goes way beyond that - it’s incredible: bravely standing astride genres to create a uniquely distinctive, and current sound that’s at once credibly, authentically faithful to the Skints’ reggae roots and yet also bravely, proudly, urban - effortlessly epitomising London in 2012 and redefining Jamaican music for the inner city in the twenty-first century.
Enjoyed in its entirety, Part & Parcel is that good. From start to finish, it oozes quality in the arrangement and execution of the boldly diverse collection of excellent songs. Confident, mature, and polished in its production and in the performances across a plethora of instruments that proves the Skints’ musical courage just as much as it does their musical prowess and across all the elements of their sound, it’s packed with wonderful moments.
Of course, not all of these songs are new, even at the first listen: Can’t Take No More has been a live staple for a while, but here, in contrast to the ubiquitous Hush TV acoustic performance or the full-on live renditions, is a stirringly soulful, reggae jam, embellished by melodica and soothing vocal harmonies.
Ratatat, before it, has also popped up all over the place as a music video, but, of course, is absolutely stunning, it’s filthy bassline and quick fire raps over sampled sirens are eerie but instantly infectious.
That the two songs are so different, and yet complement each other so perfectly, is testament to their quality and the strength of the performances and production on show here, but doesn’t go far enough to emphasise how broad the Skints’ range has become: Part & Parcel effortlessly fuses reggae and rocksteady with a punk rock attitude and glorious pop hooks and choruses, and then turns the bass up to twelve.
Once you’re done marvelling at it, it must, surely, be perfect for the dancefloor: the ska guitar parts and sun-soaked keyboard lines to the wonderful Ring Ring, for example, are infectious, first for your hips, and then, once Marcia’s vocal drops, for your heart. The lovable, peppy, poppy skank of Lay You Down, of course, is a proven live hit, instantly danceable, and, if it’s not too bold a claim, the best melody on the record. It’s also got a killer sax solo and a proper reggae drop-out.
Part & Parcel is an absolute feast for reggae fans: the sound of one of the UK’s leading underground bands growing to a new level in stature and confidence to deliver a powerhouse of a performance.
It hardly seems feasible, but the Skints have managed to raise the bar again. Amid all the clamour, just remember that this is an extremely accomplished performance of an excellent collection of songs. It deserves to be remembered as one of the very best records of its kind.
Stand-out tracks:
Can’t Take No More
Live East Die Young
Lay You Down
Sunny Sunny
Soundboy
Skints: signed CDs for pre-order
Posted by jamie on Feb 24, 2012
The Skints‘ new record Part & Parcel has climbed to 16 in the Play.com pre-order charts.
If you missed out on the pledgemusic campaign, you can still get signed copies from Play. Grab one here.
The Skints: UK dates - October 2012
Posted by jamie on Feb 22, 2012
The Skints hit the road around the UK in October. If you haven’t seen them live, you absolutely must.
Support comes from our mates The Drop. You can get tickets here.
OCTOBER 2012
02 BRISTOL, Fleece
03 CARDIFF, Ifor Bach
04 NOTTINGHAM, Maze
05 BIRMINGHAM, Academy 2
06 MANCHESTER, Academy 3
07 GLASGOW, King Tuts
08 NEWCASTLE, Trillians
09 LEEDS, Cockpit
10 NORWICH, Arts Centre
11 LONDON, Scala
You can get tickets here.
Skints: Fam’s Christmas Party 2011
Posted by jamie on Dec 28, 2011
The Skints, Random Impulse, Gecko
Nambucca, London
27th December 2011
Jamie
This show gets bigger every year. The Skints had admitted that it “broke their souls” to have to turn 50-odd fans back in to the cold as the fam’s Christmas party for 2010 sold out twice and would-be revellers were still turning up on the off-chance.
A year on, we’ve moved down the road to Nambucca. Again, it’s fierce cold outside, but on stepping inside we find a familiarly sated post-Christmas room. It’s two days after Christmas, and the heavy excesses have taken their toll: enough people in here have eaten so much as to be constantly sleepy, and a few haven’t stopped drinking since Christmas eve. There’s a proper party atmosphere, though, just as you’d expect when the Skints headline in London, and the sense of happy camaraderie is palpable.
We don’t find out why, but doors are opened late. It just means more pub time, though.
Gecko open up with customary, easy-going charm. Their distinctive, idiosyncratic blend of easygoing, dancefloor-friendly pop is as addictive as ever, and their unique sense of humour is an instant hit: perfect for this gathering crowd that’s still in the swing of the festive season and bang up for being entertained.
Gecko, of course, are consummate entertainers and they’re in sparkling form here. Got Science is underway before Will appears on stage, and they’re instantly in full swing, moving straight in to Best Friend, from their new Pigeon EP before adding Perkie to their line-up for their new cover, Kelis’s Millionaire. Her rich, soft voice is the perfect complement to Will and Gabe’s vocal. Si’s bass is really high in the mix, too, and the combined effect is ultra-smooth and just a little bit down-and-dirty. It all comes together perfectly, and Gecko are incredible: wonderfully danceable, and irresistibly good fun. I Got Time is a personal highlight, though Safest Bet, joined into What You Gonna Do? and later Gotta Wait are the real crowd pleasers. By their last song, Pigeon, the whole room is merrily singing, or shouting, along and the night’s off to a fantastic start.
Random Impulse* has brought his own crowd with him. Even despite their unique-ness (I know) he’s instantly, strikingly different from Gecko. Random Impulse is a rapper who also sings, rather than the other way around, and, backed by a guitar band, has fused giant, distorted riffs and a visceral, properly punk rock energy in to his dirty take on grime. Tonight the riffs are bigger and more brutal than ever.
He’s only got a short set, yet Random Impulse races through it at chaotic, breakneck pace. By Holding on til Thursday the room is a giddy, bouncing mess of jumping feet, sliding on a sheen of beer and sweat, and pumping fists. His next track, Still They Sing, is, appropriately, about singing along badly when drunk. It’s scarcely necessary, but he asks everyone to join in with the “la la la la”, as badly as possible. Thanks to the efforts of his own band, it turns in to an oddly shouty metal song, but it’s brilliant fun throughout. Rightly observing that the more melodic Best Party Ever will be a gentler end to the set and a relief from what has been something of an onslaught. Though I do mean that in an enjoyable, positive sense, I doubt I’m the only one gasping by the end.
The Skints enter to a hero’s reception from a room that, by now, is shoulder to shoulder from front to back, and has been jostling for position almost since Random Impulse left the stage.
Again, there’s precious little time for chatter, and they’re straight in to a gigantic set, packed with hits. It’s messy right from the start, and difficult even to stand up such as pushing, swaying, heaving sweaty mesh we’re all tied together in. It gets hot in the back room at Nambucca, but this is on another level.
While the Skints are playing Mindless, there are two points where we all almost fall over. Then the crowd-surfers start to come over the top of us, and then, at the third attempt, the whole pit ends up lying on each other’s legs. It’s moments like this that stay with you forever, eh? Bright Girl, predictably, and Lay You Down go down a storm too.
Fairly soon Josh is observing that they’ll need a bigger room again for this show next year, and soon has to remind a few bods that we’re all here for a good time. He does it in inimitable style:
“If it was me who’d come to see us, and I got beaten up and it ruined my New Year’s, I know I wouldn’t be happy. We’re not one of those bands who tells you to beat the shit out of each other because we think we’re cool..”
Just like earlier, their cover of Sam Cooke’s You Send Me is a timely breather. New single Ratatat is a proper party song, and then the Skints wrap up with Murderer and then Change the Channel. They return for an encore of Up Against the Wall and finally Culture Vulture, and there’s the promise of free shots from the bar as well. It’s testament to the excesses of the season, and of tonight in particular, that a few of us just can’t take no more**
* We’ve linked to this Guardian article on Random Impulse because we really liked it.
** See what I did there? They played that too, by the way.
This Are UK Ska: Vol. 4
Posted by jamie on Dec 23, 2011
Various Artists
This Are UK Ska, Vol.4 – Do the Dog, 2011
9th December, 2011
Jamie
This is really, really exciting: the return of Do the Dog’s This Are UK Ska series of compilations is a long time coming, but definitely well worth the wait.
In the space of one wonderful little disc, the twenty two years (twenty two!) of tireless devotion given to supporting the UK’s DIY bands get their just rewards: the list of contributors to this record reads like a who’s who of ska and ska-punk in the UK in 2011.
The disc itself is, musically speaking, as diverse and exciting as you’d expect. It’s appropriate, given the brief and deliberately open-minded mission statement on the DTD website:
“We love ska in all its colourful guises, be it old school, laid back Jamaican style ska, bouncy 2-tone ska vibes, upbeat modern ska/pop or thunderous ska/punk!”
Given the enthusiasm with which DTD embrace new and different kinds of music and the rude health in which we find our scene, the potential was always there for a compilation this broad, this exciting and of such excellent quality.
To have pulled it all together, though, is still no small achievement. It’s excellent from start to finish, with scorching tracks from some of the scene’s exciting new talent mixing it with the more established names.
Of course, you’ll get to hear new tracks from some of the bands they’ve been supporting for years: alongside the sadly defunct Smoke Like a Fish, there’s also Do the Dog favourites, Rebelation, Drewvis and Cartoon Violence. The thing is, there are also exciting contributions from a new generation of great UK bands: keep an eye out for Miacca’s catchy Would You Like Me To Be the Cat? (unless you’re George Galloway), Copasetics’ sinister-yet-excellent Phantom Signals and the incendiary Wilsonator from John Player Specials. Then, fall in love with Breadchasers’ brilliant epic prog-ska-rock skankalong Time to Stop. It’s relatively light-hearted for the band, but fits perfectly on this compilation.
There’s so much here, and it’s all so different, so interesting and so enjoyable, that I could easily sit and type about it all day. Every track is a highlight.
This Are UK Ska Volume 4 is probably the most enjoyable so far, neatly showcasing a wide variety of established and up-and-coming UK acts. A perfect snapshot of where the scene is in 2011, it also highlights a few names to look out for in years to come.
Given that this was the label who first brought us Dirty Revolution, Catch-it Kebabs and the Skints, perhaps we were right to expect a lot from this disc. It doesn’t disappoint one bit.
This Are UK Ska, No. 4 is available now from Do the Dog Music.
Skints / Gecko / Random Impulse: Christmas show
Posted by jamie on Dec 20, 2011
This year the Skints’ Christmas party has moved down the road to Nambucca. Support will come from lovably impish acoustic-ska-pop raggamuffins Gecko and the ridiculously brilliant Random Impulse.
See it on facebook here.
Get tickets here.
Skints: big news on new album
Posted by jamie on Dec 5, 2011
We’ve got some exciting news about the Skints‘ new record. The exciting news is that there’s going to be some, uh, exciting news. Soon.
It’s not going to be little exciting news, either. Have a peek at this, from our inbox..
King Blues / Skints: £5 Hatfield show
Posted by jamie on Nov 18, 2011
The Skints and the King Blues are two out of five bands you can see FOR A FIVER at Jagermeister’s comically named “Ice Cold in Hatfield”.
It’s on Tuesday 29th November, with doors at 18:30.
Get tickets here.
Skints: cheeky new album update
Posted by jamie on Oct 12, 2011
Go on, then. We’ve been cheeky with this one. Latest estimate we had was 2012..
