THE SKINTS

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on Monday, March 09th 2015 - 9 776 views Three years after "Part & Parcel", with only the "Short Change" EP in between, London’s The Skints are back with producer Prince Fatty. Somewhere between reggae, ska and pop, the north-east London band suits him like a glove, he who has worked with artists as varied as Sugarhill Gang, Lilly Allen and the like. The eclecticism of The Skints gives him a vast playground to clear, at any rate wider than the ones offered by Horseman or Hollie Cook. Especially as the concept of the album lends itself to every kind of experiment: "FM" (for “Frequency Murderation”!) imagines a fictional pirate radio station, 103.Skints, complete with presenters, jingles and a programme straddling ska, reggae, dancehall and punk. In short, tailor-made for The Skints, this tribute to the pirate radio stations that were once one of the driving forces behind the growth of reggae across the Channel. The more the years go by, the further the English band The Skints, formed in 2005, move away from the “raw” sound that characterised their early days, opting for a more polished, refined one. Prince Fatty’s work is probably responsible for much of this evolution. Even so, the Big Smoke quartet still shows just as many qualities, starting with the energy on display and the diversity of the vocals: three of the four members take the mic (and can combine), giving each track its own particular mood. Drummer Jamie Kyriakides, for instance, handles the chorus of the first single This Town, a tribute to their capital featuring Tippa Irie and Horseman, while guitarist Josh Waters Rudge launches into deejay verses and the delightful Marcia Richards moves as she pleases between silky singing (Come To You) and fearless phrasing. With further reinforcements from Horseman, from Tippa Irie, irresistible on Tazer Beam, and from Rival on Eyes In The Back Of My Head, "FM" is not short of punch, mixing guitar riffs on In The Night, or covering the intimidating My War by American punk band Black Flag. The Skints turned up at Fatty’s studio with sometimes only embryonic songs, sometimes a chorus, sometimes nothing at all, letting spontaneity do the talking. The result is this joyful blend of reggae groove, pop melodies and rock energy, to be discovered soon live on French stages. Pull Up : Tazer Beam feat. Tippa Irie Eyes In The Back Of My Head feat. Rival Come To You My War

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