Tuesday, June 29
Warning: Speshul Feetaz...
Right, first of all, I need a couple of lines of angry ranting so that the formatting on my one picture for the day actually works. Right, the executive decision on behalf of the permenant Less Is More staff (ie, me, and possibly Super) is that K80 is a bitch. Yes. No need for me to explain why, but she is. So methinx I'm not single for the prom. Good one...
Enough? Enough.
And now, for what I hope will become a regular feature, a Review Of An Album From 2002.
I've noticed recently that many of the CDs in my collection were released in 2002. Both good and bad. In fact, about half my album collection comes from 2002. And why not? 2002 was a golden year for me, the last time I actually had a girlfriend, the year I properly discovered alcahol and generally discovered green. Hell, if we want the lows too, the year I lost my virginity. So it stands to reason, by this pie-eyed chain of coincidences, that 2002 was a good year for my musical tastes.
So, rather than review contemporary releases, I'd like to look at albums from this portentuous time. There's quite enough in my collection now...
Now, to start with, the work of wonder that is Babylon, by Skindred.
Herein be a picture of the band. See, I've got cool text tags now! Groovy!
Seriously, have you ever heard of Dub War? Because I certainly haven't. They exist only as a namecheck on the first Soulfly album, by the name of a guest vocalist, Benji Webbe, and by a man going "Kick up the bass, yo!. But Dub War is the predecessor to Skindred, the only difference being songs played and the choice of bassist.
The premise is a simple one. Take a metal/punk crossover band, and add a groovy ass black guy doing both crazy ragga rapping vocals and singing, and you have Skindred. I discovered the delights of this odd mish mash on a free Kerrang! CD, the same way I discovered half my CD collection. The title track of their album, a furious rant against the police, starting with a squealing guitar line and an extremly fast bout of rapping, continuing in a less squealy vein for four minutes. Delightful, I thought. But due to the utter obscurity of the band, I couldn't find the album, and did nothing else about it for about two years,
Recent developments in the field of eBay/KaAzA resulted in me hearing a few more tracks, and eventually buying the damn thing. Before being told by Johnny Napalm that he got it for free by roadying for them one gig. Git.
But an album review then. The album kicks in with a drum and bass loop, not something I'm particularly averse to, despite my metal roots. This kicks into "Set It Off", a delightfully stomping rap-metal number. No, don't run away, I said rap metal, not nu metal, as some of you may be allergic to.
Most of the album is defined by those things which I dearly love - bastard heavy riffs, precise drumming, and a vocally flexible frontman. On one of my favourite tracks on the album, "Kiss And Make Up" - a delightful number about domestic abuse - Benji quite comftably shows us he's capable of singing, then for the bridge (if thats the right word - I'm a drummer, I know nothing about musical terminology) he launches into a bout of screaming.
There are very few high concepts on Babylon, no politics (apart from the title track bashing the police), but then, no whining about girls. It ranges from songs about banging good tunes ("Selector" - which happens to be a banging good tune itself) to racial prejudice ("Bruises", which is hardly the worst tune on the album, but nothing like the best)
The album only really falls down on two songs. "The Fear", a tirade against bullying with a barrel of unknown guest musicians - comes across as cliched and whiny. And "Together" is a stogy love song, which doesn't cast Mr Webbe as a Romeo, merely a plebe.
My favourite tracks on the album amount to two. "World Domination" is all screaming vocals, roaring guitars, pounding drums, and even has time for odd vocal distortion in the middle. And the album's secret track - dubbed "Vampire Killa", because 'tis what the songs about - is a mental mish mash of bizarre sound effects, silly rapping about hunting vampires in LA, and Benji going "womp" repeatedly, which is the funniest noise I've heard a man make ever.
Incidently, they'r re-recording said album, and adding four new tracks. Well, thanks lads. Just as I'd bought your album the first time round, you go and redo it. What's wrong with just taking more time out and writing a new album entirely? Its a dark day when even the nice guys are screwing you about.
But, at any rate, it might mean youl'll be able to pick up said album, and enjoy its goodness.
Shiny Chyld Album Rating: 7 Shiny Skulls
Operative Word: Womp
Enough? Enough.
And now, for what I hope will become a regular feature, a Review Of An Album From 2002.
I've noticed recently that many of the CDs in my collection were released in 2002. Both good and bad. In fact, about half my album collection comes from 2002. And why not? 2002 was a golden year for me, the last time I actually had a girlfriend, the year I properly discovered alcahol and generally discovered green. Hell, if we want the lows too, the year I lost my virginity. So it stands to reason, by this pie-eyed chain of coincidences, that 2002 was a good year for my musical tastes.
So, rather than review contemporary releases, I'd like to look at albums from this portentuous time. There's quite enough in my collection now...
Now, to start with, the work of wonder that is Babylon, by Skindred.
Seriously, have you ever heard of Dub War? Because I certainly haven't. They exist only as a namecheck on the first Soulfly album, by the name of a guest vocalist, Benji Webbe, and by a man going "Kick up the bass, yo!. But Dub War is the predecessor to Skindred, the only difference being songs played and the choice of bassist.
The premise is a simple one. Take a metal/punk crossover band, and add a groovy ass black guy doing both crazy ragga rapping vocals and singing, and you have Skindred. I discovered the delights of this odd mish mash on a free Kerrang! CD, the same way I discovered half my CD collection. The title track of their album, a furious rant against the police, starting with a squealing guitar line and an extremly fast bout of rapping, continuing in a less squealy vein for four minutes. Delightful, I thought. But due to the utter obscurity of the band, I couldn't find the album, and did nothing else about it for about two years,
Recent developments in the field of eBay/KaAzA resulted in me hearing a few more tracks, and eventually buying the damn thing. Before being told by Johnny Napalm that he got it for free by roadying for them one gig. Git.
But an album review then. The album kicks in with a drum and bass loop, not something I'm particularly averse to, despite my metal roots. This kicks into "Set It Off", a delightfully stomping rap-metal number. No, don't run away, I said rap metal, not nu metal, as some of you may be allergic to.
Most of the album is defined by those things which I dearly love - bastard heavy riffs, precise drumming, and a vocally flexible frontman. On one of my favourite tracks on the album, "Kiss And Make Up" - a delightful number about domestic abuse - Benji quite comftably shows us he's capable of singing, then for the bridge (if thats the right word - I'm a drummer, I know nothing about musical terminology) he launches into a bout of screaming.
There are very few high concepts on Babylon, no politics (apart from the title track bashing the police), but then, no whining about girls. It ranges from songs about banging good tunes ("Selector" - which happens to be a banging good tune itself) to racial prejudice ("Bruises", which is hardly the worst tune on the album, but nothing like the best)
The album only really falls down on two songs. "The Fear", a tirade against bullying with a barrel of unknown guest musicians - comes across as cliched and whiny. And "Together" is a stogy love song, which doesn't cast Mr Webbe as a Romeo, merely a plebe.
My favourite tracks on the album amount to two. "World Domination" is all screaming vocals, roaring guitars, pounding drums, and even has time for odd vocal distortion in the middle. And the album's secret track - dubbed "Vampire Killa", because 'tis what the songs about - is a mental mish mash of bizarre sound effects, silly rapping about hunting vampires in LA, and Benji going "womp" repeatedly, which is the funniest noise I've heard a man make ever.
Incidently, they'r re-recording said album, and adding four new tracks. Well, thanks lads. Just as I'd bought your album the first time round, you go and redo it. What's wrong with just taking more time out and writing a new album entirely? Its a dark day when even the nice guys are screwing you about.
But, at any rate, it might mean youl'll be able to pick up said album, and enjoy its goodness.
Shiny Chyld Album Rating: 7 Shiny Skulls
Operative Word: Womp
