Skindred

Big Tings

Written by: PP on 13/06/2018 22:12:11

Skindred shoot for the stars on "Big Tings"...and miss. They have always been notoriously bad on studio albums save for a couple of exceptions, but this album is a new rock bottom for their recorded material. Whatever happened to their signature style ragga metal? "Volume" saw the band begin straying in this direction, but "Big Tings" all but abandons their reggae roots, even discarding the EDM and dubstep elements in favour of...a track like "Machine"? This is as generic AC/DC and Guns'N'Roses worship as it comes, and that's not meant as a compliment.

Instead, "Big Tings" is riddled with washed out, nothing-saying mainstream arena rock songs where any and all charisma and charm has been ironed away. If you're looking for an edge, you won't find it here. In its place, huge-sounding tracks that amount to...well, not much to be honest. A big production ensures a couple of dime-a-dozen pop choruses but literally nothing to write home about. When just about every track has you reaching for the skip button, something's going horribly wrong.

"Tell Me" is a rare gem on the record, a cut where Benji reaches into the multicultural soul of what I like to call the London sound, or a hybrid group of artists that reads amongst it quirky and innovative UK artists like Sonic Boom Six, The Skints, etc. Same with "Loud And Clear", where hip-hop and reggae undertones make a welcome entry, although even here the band unnecessarily inflate the sound for their chorus for supposedly far-reaching tracks. A classic case of bigger is rarely better on its own. Fortunately, "Alive" follows and blends together Nintendo sounds with drum'n'bass elements to bring about one of the more interesting tracks on the record.

Big production, "Big Tings", huh? Even as a long-time fan of the band, you'd have to feel insulted about the simplicity and dumbed down format presented here. Skip this one, or destroy your Skindred memories at your own peril.

5

Download: Tell Me, Alive, Loud And Clear
For the fans of: (Hed) P.E, P.O.D, Nickelback
Listen: Facebook

Release date 27.04.2018
Napalm Records

Related Items | How we score?
Comments
comments powered by Disqus

Legal

© Copyright MMXXIV Rockfreaks.net.