2023-08-01 06:00:32
Skindred – Smile
Origin: Newport, Wales
Release: 04.08.2023
Label: Earache Records
Genre: Metal / Rock / Reggae / Crossover
For more than 25 years nobody knows what kind of music Skindred actually do. Because metal, punk and reggae are just a few of the influences that make the Welsh band’s inimitable sound more than stand out. It goes without saying that not everyone likes it. But the band still doesn’t care, just like they did us with their eighth long player Smile proves once more.
“When I look at the crowd, be it in a small room or at a festival, one thing catches my eye: the smile”explains frontman Benji Webbe the album title. And: “Our lives are regarding hearing that our music has encouraged people and gotten them through dark times. But even when we’re done and dead, people will still be listening to this music. That thought makes me smile.” Well then, the question remains: Which expression of the mind conjures up Smile in the face of the cosmopolitan metalhead?
Love is in the Air
Relatively simple live hits that you can sing along to shouldn’t be missing on this album either. Skindred have always been known for spreading positive vibes and not necessarily digging deep in the rhetorical grab bag. Gimme That Boom falls right into that notch, like you HERE can hear for yourself.
But the band has a lot more to offer, with L.O.V.E. (Smile Please) For example, she spreads a cozy one-love atmosphere in the best way Bob Marley manner. Just a little hotter than the world-famous Rastafari once did. This Appointed Love starts similarly, but occasionally switches to the metallic sound of the Welsh.
Positive Vibes
With Black Stars and the maudlin Mama two highlights of the album can only be found relatively late in the track list. The former blends the shaggy vocal style of Benji Webbe with American punk and alternative rock, while the latter would also cause enthusiasm at any cannabis-clouded reggae festival.
Overall is Smile So a very diverse, but for that very reason also somehow typical album by the exceptional artists of Skindred. That means: If you didn’t like her style until now, you have to look elsewhere. However, fans and occasional listeners will be able to fully convince the disc, because the Welshmen once once more manage to ensure a positive atmosphere without exception, without appearing annoying or infantile in the long run – even following many listens. And that alone is already very big cinema.
Conclusion
Smile proves that the world needs more positive music and emotions. Because all the current crises cannot be solved with anger and sadness. Many thanks to Skindred for reminding me of this simple but important truth. When the accompanying music not only grooves, but also rocks as well as it does on this album, then Rastafarians and metalheads can only happily hug each other. 8 / 10
Line Up
Benji Webbe – Gesang
Mikey Demus – guitar
Daniel Pugsley – Bass
Arya Goggin – drums
Dan Sturgess – DJ, Sampling
Tracklist
01. Our Religion
02. Gimme That Boom
03. Set Fazers
04. Life That’s Free
05. If I Could
06. L.O.V.E. (Smile Please)
07. This Appointed Love
08. Black Stars
09. State Of The Union
10. Addicted
11. Mama
12. Unstoppable
Links
Facebook Skindred
Instagram Skindred
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