East London Reggae
Wednesday, 23 December 2009
What do most people think about when someone says East London? Pearly Kings and Queens? Jellied eels? Bobby Moore? Brick Lane curries? The Krays? The Blitz? Petticoat Lane? Maybe even Barbara Windsor in that crap TV soap? Thankfully, beyond the stereotyping and, despite cynical attempts by corrupt councils to gentrify parts of the East End, there is still a multicultural community fighting to thrive. Ok, so East London might still be more famous for Reggie than reggae but things are changing for the better, thanks to people like the Skints.
Despite being fellow travellers with many of the bands in the ska punk revolution, the Skints have been gradually honing their very own sound which probably owes much more to reggae than ska or punk. It was most apparent at a recent gig in Peterborough when their sound contrasted starkly with that of headliners Sonic Boom Six. Now the band have released their debut full album, Live Breathe Build Believe on Rebel Alliance Recordings, the exciting fledgling label run by Sonic Boom Six.
BIN CAPITALISM AND COWELL
Mindless starts off with elegant piano, bursts into more vigorous life after 30 seconds before settling back to a gentler rhythm. If the music on the opening track is at all gentle, the same can’t be said about the lyrics. Setting the tone for the rest of the album, it’s a general rant against the failures of the capitalist system with its ability to create fear but not meaningful employment.
Get Me? is the track that stuck in my head for weeks on end long before I heard a recorded version. “Too much violence and bloodshed inna my hometown” is the line that did it. It’s a great line in context but it seemed to burst out spontaneously at the wrong moments. From memory, I think my over exuberant version might have scared a couple of people at work as well as the guy serving me in the Co-op. The song itself is a withering attack on plastic punk and bland music, and resonates well here at TTRP. Certainly the tripe that emanates from Cowell Towers fits in with the band’s opinions about lack of originality leading to “an overflowing bucket of shite”.
MOONSTOMPING ON SWASTIKAS
Ya Know contains the “live, breathe, build, believe” of the album title and mellows out with some beautiful sax from Marcia. It also needs saying that many white men (and women) have tried authentic soul and/or reggae voices and fallen far short of the real deal. With the Skints, this is not an issue. Jamie has one of the smoothest soul voices, and Josh switches effortlessly between authentic reggae and hard man London.
Putting aside the message for a moment, let’s not forget that the Skints are a dance band. With the next two tracks, Contemplations of the Modern Rudeboy and Culture Vulture, the band wage war on our ability to stand still. Whether driving punk beat or infectious reggae groove, both have the same goal and they work.
Murderer and Sociopath are the two songs on the album that appeared on an earlier six track recording on Do the Dog Music. The former showcases Marcia’s impressive vocal ability and the latter has the wonderfully memorable line “I tell ya exactly where to stick ya swastika”. Bright Girl is a light and bouncy summer song which seems a bit incongruous as I write this review looking out on a grey-topped snow scene. It’ll probably get a few more plays when the British summers returns in full force ha ha. The lyrics, however, remind me of lots of ‘nice’ people I know for whom life is all about TV and shopping, never digging below the surface for real issues which affect real people. Grace and education, Steve, grace and education.
SOFA SLAVERY, TRAGEDY AND HOPE
Change the Channel deals with our slavery to the modern media, the new opiate of the people. “I see them governed by the telly…….they tell you how to look thin, while you sit on your arse, and a canned laughter sitcom will tell you when to laugh. A nation of zombies all under control….” This song needs to be played in the ad breaks between all ‘reality’ TV shows. Until we all wake up.
The whole album is dedicated to the memory of Roanna Grace Richards, Marcia’s sister, who died in tragic circumstances in 2005, aged only 13. At this special time of year, we send our best wishes, peace and love to Marcia, her family and the band. Roanna’s Song is a beautiful tribute, delivered by Marcia, mixing thoughts about war, wrestling with loss and yet holding out hope for the future. It brings out the softer side in me every time I listen, and helps to remind me about the fragility of life and the need to appreciate those I love.
The album closes with the acoustic Soul for Sale, almost tagged on as an afterthought. The expression “a broken shard of hope” stopped me in my tracks as I read through the lyrics. Any band that can move my feet, touch my emotions, challenge my mind and provoke me to action must be doing something right! Live Breathe Build Believe is not a perfect album but it’s a really good album and thoroughly human. It gives hope of something better, albeit a broken shard of hope, in this often miserable world, and, let’s face it, the same could never be said of East London Reggie.
LINKS
Rebel Alliance Recordings MySpace
LINKED ARTICLES ON TAKE THE RED PILL
A Lot More Better Than People Think (Skints live review)
Hope Not Hate in Birmingham (King Blues & Skints live review)
Ska Punk Academy (Sonic Boom Six, Skints & Resolution 242 live review)
