It’s true. I couldn’t resist adding another column in hopes of turning you cats and kittens on to more music. This is going to focus on discs primarily from the 80s (and early 90s) that have long been hard to find or sort of fell through the cracks of the collective consciousness. They will also be true records in that you should own the whole thing and not download just a few songs. To make life easy, I will focus on spending some of your eMusic credits. The service is still spotty with new releases but an amazing array of back catalogues have come on-line and digging through ebay or gemm has now been simplified to single clicks at a fraction of the cost. Sit back and enjoy!
Rollerskate Skinny “Shoulder Voices”
All of the hoopla surrounding the recent appearances by My Bloody Valentine reminded me that Kevin Shields isn’t the only Shields brother to play guitar on one of my cherished albums. Little brother Jimi joined Rollerskate Skinny for their debut long player before making his way out. While he does have some of his brother’s ingenuity in wrestling tones from just six strings, it is important to note that Rollerkskate Skinny was primarily the vessel carrying front man Ken Griffin’s vision. In fact, you can hear Griffin’s genius for being noisy in all the right places both here and in all of his subsequent projects (Kid Silver, Favourite Sons.) None of those projects set out to use noise quite in the way the young band of Irish rockers did here. Shields departure would fully free Griffin to bring in other tones and instruments and the following “Horsedrawn Wishes” still stands as an Irish touchstone, despite being virtually unheard in the U.S. That disc’s notoriety would serve to swallow up “Shoulder Voices” when discussing the band, which is truly a shame as it is such an amazing record in it’s own right.
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Another shame is the crime that is the hideous painting adorning the record. I passed this up three times over in the record store based on that demented face alone. I finally was fortunate enough to hear “Bow Hitch-Hiker” on Dave’s Garage on WHFS and I managed to look the other way when walking to the counter with it the next day. I was certainly glad that I did. |
“Miss Leader” layers on melody after clever melody all spun through numerous guitar effects, creating an otherwordly swirl. A tinkling piano holds it all together in the background, yet the six-string attack is so engaging that you don’t even notice it. Griffin set about applying the same complexity to his vocals, as he would often sing counter melodies against himself. He managed to use his voice as an instrument in the mix via and engaging guttural rumble or a Gaelic falsetto reaching for the heavens. All the while it came draped in a street-wise bit of grit counter to the odd lyrics framing the twisting and turning music. “Violence To Violence” places all of this over a nearly psychedelic march. “Lunasa” brings deep rhythms being plinked out on their instruments in time with huffing voices creating the cadence. This is where the band was at it’s most exciting. With Rollerskate Skinny you had incredibly experimental music taking place with the guitar-based rock experience. It would predate some sounds that bands like The Flaming Lips would streamline into pop gold later on.
Not great at titling songs, “Bring On Stigmata” sees a simple surge overtaken with MBV like hails of noise and phantom pings in the ether. “Bella” and “Ages” have a contemplative middle before “Ages” stutters in distortion before breaking loose only to have a flute melody riding over it, with the guitar work not far off from Wire’s current output.
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Then you reach the epic “Bow Hitch-Hiker” with its poppier drums and insect-like choral backing and so many twists and turns that your head spins. It is a rush to say the least. |
If you like anything you’ve heard this is a must track to download. “Some Give Birth” serves to give away a little more of their psychedelic and Bowie roots. “Shallow Thunder” actually starts off in a straightforward manner before blasting off. “Slave” plods but in a magically desperate way as Griffin’s voice turns the yearning on the chord change. Closing with the playful dueling distortion of “So Far Down Up To Heaven” you feel as if you have just exited a guitar-fueled head trip – and finding one of those that still sounds modern is a pretty rare find.
The record would find its admirers in guitarheads and see the band playing the Lollapalooza second stage as well as opening for Pavement. Fortunately the credibility amongst fellow musicians and journalists sent the group on to Warners, but it was to only last an album before falling apart (although rumors persist that a third Skinny album sits in the vaults somewhere.)
Trip out
RIYL: Swervedriver, Mercury Rev, Flaming Lips, Pavement, Sonic Youth
