When
Streets tracks first appeared in DJ sets and on
garage mix albums circa 2000, they made for an interesting change of pace; instead of hyper-speed
ragga chatting or candy-coated divas (or both), listeners heard banging tracks hosted by a strangely conversational bloke with a mock cockney accent and a half-singing, half-rapping delivery. It was
Mike Skinner, producer and MC, the half-clued-up, half-clueless voice behind
club hits
"Has It Come to This?" and
"Let's Push Things Forward." Facing an entire full-length of
Streets tracks hardly sounded like a pleasant prospect, but
Skinner's debut,
Original Pirate Material, is an excellent listen -- much better than the heavy-handed hype would make you think. Unlike most
garage LPs, it's certainly not a substitute for a night out; it's more a statement on modern-day British youth, complete with all the references to Playstations, Indian takeaway, and copious amounts of cannabis you'd expect.
Skinner also has a refreshing way of writing songs, not tracks, that immediately distinguishes him from most in the
garage scene. True, describing his delivery as rapping would be giving an undeserved compliment (you surely wouldn't hear any American rappers dropping bombs like this line: "I wholeheartedly agree with your viewpoint"). Still, nearly every song here succeeds wildly, first place (after the hits) going to
"The Irony of It All," on which
Skinner and a stereotypical British lout go back and forth "debating" the merits of weed and lager, respectively (
Skinner's meek, agreeable commentary increasingly, and hilariously, causes "Terry" to go off the edge). The production is also excellent;
"Let's Push Things Forward" is all lurching
ragga flow, with a one-note organ line and drunken trumpets barely pushing the chorus forward.
"Sharp Darts" and
"Too Much Brandy" have short, brutal tech lines driving them, and really don't need any more for maximum impact. Though
club-phobic listeners may find it difficult placing
Skinner as just the latest dot along a line connecting quintessentially British musicians/humorists/social critics
Noeel Coward,
the Kinks,
Ian Dury,
the Jam,
the Specials, and
Happy Mondays,
Original Pirate Material is a rare
garage album: that is, one with a shelf life beyond six months. ~ John Bush
