2008 Woodie Awards
Reggae And Rock Genre Not So Perfect Mix
British-Based Skindred Creates New Musical Hybrid with Debut Album
Kadijah Basir
Issue date: 12/9/04 Section: Arts and Entertainment
The idea to put Reggae Punk and Metal together never crossed the minds of many.
They are very different forms of music that have taken force and moved in their own direction.
But what if you do put together these different styles of music. What would it sound like and who would be creating it?
It would probably sound like Skindred.
I first heard them when I turned on MTV U and watched the first single "Nobody" in awe as a seemingly reggae-style video held strong threads of metal sting and a singer who sounds as sweet as Beres Hammond, but can also hit a note as high as Jonathon from Korn. I couldn't help but be quite intrigued by this unique style of music.
Being born and raised in reggae music, and also loving the thrashing of some good rock 'n roll, I wanted to learn more about this band and what they seem to represent.
Originally from the big U.K., the members of the band - Benji as lead singer, Dan on bass, Arya on the drums and Mickey on the guitar - were at first all involved in different bands, but they all loved music and wanted to create a fresh and original sound that, well, also gave the people what they want. So Skindred was created. Skindred's first solo album titled Babylon is composed of a great mix of punk and metal.
These English born musicians have tried to incorporate all of their musical influences into their album. Skindred collaborated with many well-known rockers to produce this album with Howard Benson, who also produced artists such as Hoobastank, P. O.D and Papa Roach.
He helped make the album come together with the assistance of Rick Will from Incubus.
I enjoyed the single so much that I was anticipating great things for the rest of the album.
So listening to it didn't quite fulfill my expectations of great music.
Not to say that it didn't spark my interest at all, it just didn't live up the hype that "Nobody" set for them.
The album jumps from very reggae to extreme metal and falls back into a punk style, creating a confusing mix.
They are very different forms of music that have taken force and moved in their own direction.
But what if you do put together these different styles of music. What would it sound like and who would be creating it?
It would probably sound like Skindred.
I first heard them when I turned on MTV U and watched the first single "Nobody" in awe as a seemingly reggae-style video held strong threads of metal sting and a singer who sounds as sweet as Beres Hammond, but can also hit a note as high as Jonathon from Korn. I couldn't help but be quite intrigued by this unique style of music.
Being born and raised in reggae music, and also loving the thrashing of some good rock 'n roll, I wanted to learn more about this band and what they seem to represent.
Originally from the big U.K., the members of the band - Benji as lead singer, Dan on bass, Arya on the drums and Mickey on the guitar - were at first all involved in different bands, but they all loved music and wanted to create a fresh and original sound that, well, also gave the people what they want. So Skindred was created. Skindred's first solo album titled Babylon is composed of a great mix of punk and metal.
These English born musicians have tried to incorporate all of their musical influences into their album. Skindred collaborated with many well-known rockers to produce this album with Howard Benson, who also produced artists such as Hoobastank, P. O.D and Papa Roach.
He helped make the album come together with the assistance of Rick Will from Incubus.
I enjoyed the single so much that I was anticipating great things for the rest of the album.
So listening to it didn't quite fulfill my expectations of great music.
Not to say that it didn't spark my interest at all, it just didn't live up the hype that "Nobody" set for them.
The album jumps from very reggae to extreme metal and falls back into a punk style, creating a confusing mix.