OFTEN compared to The Pixies for their guttural and loud melodic versatility, it seems that the resonance in the dragging vocal abilities of the lead singer makes SKATERS stand out in the American musical pop landscape.
While influences from The Talking Heads and Devo can be deciphered after the first few notes of ‘Mental Case’, the grit punk pop that made Manhattan resurfaces but this time in a more electric way.
Freshly granted their freedom (willingly or unwillingly) from Warner Bros, the boys are back with a flashy yet dreamy pop ballad that would make you feel nostalgic about summer and its warmth and beaches… And even if Scotland does not always rewards its inhabitants with a very sunny season, at least music is here to remind us it exists!
Even if the last album was not a hit with every pair of ears it reached, it propelled them to do intense touring around the U.S, the U.K and Australia. Since then, the band decided to rebuild their fantasies and follow their own path and this new single is the first draught of their brand new DIY material.
The similarities between SKATERS and the other post punk bands are very much easy to grasp at first sight. The juvenile attitude that oozes from the band, the fact that they took NYC as a muse for their recordings and their nonchalant approach to music itself, all those elements should be used as warnings reminding us that plenty of bands have tried to revive a certain style of music and left the stage almost famous. But that vision would be quite pessimistic.
So if bands like Peace, Pavement or even The Drums lighten up something in your insides, check the band’s new video for ‘Mental Case’, where Alia Shawkat (Arrested Development; Broad City) walks alone in a sea of couples publicly displaying their affection in the middle of the streets while she tries to make her way into town.
Check out the video below:
