Skunk Anansie - Smashes & Trashes [Album]

Virgin Records

November 27, 2009, 07:08 PM

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by deadletteroffice [More from this Author]

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'Best Of' collections are a strange beast, rendered even stranger when the band in question really didn't have all that many 'hits.' Skunk Anansie are definitely one of those bands that glide by on the periphery of your radar with a few decent singles and a solid fan-base, but nothing particularly worthy of your average music fans undying love and devotion. 'Hedonism' is a great song, I knew this much before and it was confirmed the moment I heard it this afternoon for the first time in years. It's the best song Alanis Morisette wishes she'd written with a timeless melody and stirring, emotional lyrics. Scratch past the surface though and it appears that song was one of many red herrings, from this evidence Skunk Anansie dealt primarily in darkly tinged, glossily distorted grunge rock and unfortunately it's on these very songs where the band fall flat.

The album starts well with the assured industrial grind of 'Charlie Big Potato,' a song which shows of an engagingly experimental side of the band that isn't exactly obvious elsewhere. The chorus may be all bluster and no substance and the opening 50 seconds are almost completely redundant but it works well as an opening statement of intent. It's a song which stands up well against the other big hitters here, namely 'Hedonism,' 'Weak' and 'Brazen.' All 3 songs hit with a direct emotional and melodic resonance which underlines why they are the groups most lasting efforts and it was sobering to hear them in the context of the bands other singles.

'Weak' is the closest the band came to aligning their grungy roots with their obvious pop-star aspirations with the grinding chorus and bitter lyrics (rendered almost void by Rod Stewart's bloodless cover) really standing out. It's a song which also lays bare one of the bands least appealing facets though, their tendency to stick to rigidly conventional song structures. Almost every 'rocker' on the album adheres to a strict, verse / chorus / verse / chorus / solo / chorus structure which (more often than not) leaves a lot to be desired. 'Hedonism' on the other hand works perfectly within the confines of this structure with it's loose groove, wandering bass line and grinding, powerful chorus. The same could be said of 'Brazen,' a power ballad in the most positive sense where the soaring strings actually compliment rather than detract from the songs intrinsic, melodic power. There's just the right amount of push and pull in both songs to keep the dynamics interesting so the payoff at the chorus is well earned.

The same unfortunately can't be said for some of the bands lesser known singles such as the amateurish 'I Can Dream' with it's gurning riffs and sixth form poetry. The same could also be said of the band's debut single 'Selling Jesus' which buries it's overtly political agenda beneath layers of squalling guitars and more obvious riffs, it's obvious the band were late bloomers as all the duff tracks here seem to come from their first album. The other track here from their first album is the comparably low-key 'Charity' which fares better thanks to it's drastic quiet / loud dynamics but still comes across as an amateurish attempt at re-writing the Pixies / Nirvana / Soundgarden songbook. There are examples of more satisfying grunge rockers in the shape of 'Tear The Place Up' and 'Twisted' with the latter sounding like a decent cast off from The Smashing Pumpkins 'Mellon Collie' album.

The band excel when they tone down the aggression though with 'Secretly's orchestral bluster and 'You'll Follow Me Down's reserved grace really shining through. The new tracks too actually stand up remarkably well against the more familiar fare, the band seem to have taken the widescreen approach a step further and the results are tantalisingly epic, especially on 'Because Of You.'

One can only assume this collection has been released to capitalise on Skunk Anansie's recent reformation and subsequent tour, but to be honest I can't see this record attracting any new casual fans. For those (like myself) though who were always curious about the band but never before felt the need to look any further, "Smashes and Trashes" might just prove a nifty little stocking filler.


Tracklisting:-
1. "Charlie Big Potato" *
2. "I Can Dream" *
3. "Hedonism (Just Because You Feel Good)" *
4. "Tear The Place Up" *
5. "Weak" *
6. "Secretly" *
7. "Because of You" *
8. "All I Want" *
9. "Brazen (Weep)" *
10. "Twisted" *
11. "Squander" *
12. "Lately" *
13. "Selling Jesus" *
14. "Charity" *
15. "You'll Follow Me Down" *