Tuesday 14 July 2009

Skint and Demoralised - Red Lipstick

Skint and Demoralised release their new single Red Lipstick this week. Last time we came across Matt Abbott and his band he was playing to a virtually empty basement in Brighton. It was, as the bands name suggests, a rather demoralising experience, even if the group tried their best. The release of Red Lipstick, which we originally previewed a demo video of here last December, finds the band on much chirpier ground. With an upbeat choppy guitar lick, a hint of the Lightning Seeds and an ounce or two of northern soul piano tossed in, Red Lipstick is a simple love song about a down to earth girl who doesn’t mind looking daft and likes “Red lipstick, fish and chips, orange juice and trips to the seaside.” It may lack the weightier punch of Matts deeper social and political lyrics that can be found elsewhere in his work, but the breezy music and spoken word vocal sound just right for English summertime. Let's get down to the beach.

And if this is all just too happy for you listen to the B Side That Week In October which is darker, downbeat and sounds like Arab Strap if they had come from Yorkshire rather than Scotland.

Matt has described himself as “A poet who occasionally sings,” and even takes his poetry to Twitter where he often posts in rhyme. “The financial effect of Glastonbury was absolutely obscene. Money to last to Wednesday ? Eleven pounds nineteen,” he recently posted after the mother of all festivals. With an album Love And Other Catastrophes now due for release on 5th October, you will be able to hear more of this rhyme set over sound effects as interludes between the more upbeat Motown meets indie guitar songs that are the core of the Skint and Demoralised sound. The group are beginning to push their wares out on display, with the single attracting some daytime exposure on Radio 1 as well as playing a number of UK Festivals this summer including Latitude and Bestival.

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