Skunk Anansie : Releases >>
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Post Orgasmic Chill [ENHANCED CD] >>
Skunk Anansie's music is as disparate as the members of the band. The multiracial British quartet is fronted by the dynamic Skin, a black feminist whose lyrics and potent delivery demand attention. As a result, the dozen songs on Post Orgasmic Chill are a compelling lot, though too multifarious to give the album real focus. Tool meets 4 Non Blondes? Heart's Ann Wilson on a rant? Skunk Anansie cover many bases with facility; their songs are dynamic and full of surprising twists. Odd bits of orchestration run into aggressive rock, which lead into commercial ballads ("Secretly"). From the crisp metallic spews on "On My Hotel TV" to the "The Skank Heads," which sounds as if it should be part of a musical, Skunk is by turns soulful and sultry, shrill and frantic, but always energetic and fiery. Not an easy band or album to get a handle on; nonetheless, Post Orgasmic Chill is a compelling collection. --Katherine Turman
Pavarotti & Friends: For Cambodia and Tibet >>
With the seventh installment of Pavarotti & Friends: For Cambodia and Tibet, the beloved tenor assembles yet another all-star cast of musicians in hopes of helping the children of Cambodia and Tibet. The music of the pop stars--which ranges from the modern rock of the veteran Eurythmics to the dance-pop of Aqua--really steals the show here, with Pavarotti lending his impeccable vocal support. Tracy Chapman performs "Baby Can I Hold You" as a duet with Pavarotti, and Eurythmics team up with him on "There Must Be an Angel (Playing with My Heart)." Of course, the tenor's fans will be begging to hear the opera great in his element, and it's no surprise that he shines on Bizet's "Agnus Dei," with international pop star Mónica Naranjo joining in; Eduardo Di Capua's "O Sole Mio," with Savage Garden; or even Luigi Denza's "Funiculi, Funicula," with Aqua and a children's chorus. As globetrotting benefit tributes go, this is a mixed bag, but there's probably something here for everyone. --Jason Verlinde
Stoosh >>
Following the success of their debut album, Paranoid and Sunburnt released in 1995, Skunk Anansie wasted no time in getting their second album Stoosh, recorded and released a year later in 1996. Produced by Garth Richardson (produced the first Rage Against the Machine Album and L7) the results were startling. Featuring new drummer Mark Richardson (ex-little Angels) it contained a harder-edged collection of songs, characterized by metal-edged guitar and Sk in spitting out her lyrics. In most cases controversial lyrics end up sounding contrived, but on this collection Skin sounded as though she really meant it. Her anger on the excellent opening track, "Yes It's Fucking Political", was almost tangible. 2006
Paranoid and Sunburnt >>
While everyone around them was celebrating resolutely white-boy, hedonistic, 1960s-inspired Britpop, the four Londoners who make up Skunk Anansie released a multiracial, politically-charged debut in 1995 that owed a greater debt to the funk-rock of Sly & the Family Stone and Living Colour and to the metal mightiness of prime Black Sabbath. Lyrically, in "Intellectualize My Blackness" and the "100 Ways to Be a Good Girl," vocalist Skin directly confronts prejudice and throws it back in the faces of its vessels. "Selling Jesus" and "I Can Dream" showcase her voice pretty much at the height of its power. Indeed, Paranoid & Sunburnt captures the band in top form. --Everett True
Charlie Big Potato >>
Brazen Weep >>
Weak >>
Hedonism >>
Paranoid and Sunburnt >>
While everyone around them was celebrating resolutely white-boy, hedonistic, 1960s-inspired Britpop, the four Londoners who make up Skunk Anansie released a multiracial, politically-charged debut in 1995 that owed a greater debt to the funk-rock of Sly & the Family Stone and Living Colour and to the metal mightiness of prime Black Sabbath. Lyrically, in "Intellectualize My Blackness" and the "100 Ways to Be a Good Girl," vocalist Skin directly confronts prejudice and throws it back in the faces of its vessels. "Selling Jesus" and "I Can Dream" showcase her voice pretty much at the height of its power. Indeed, Paranoid & Sunburnt captures the band in top form. --Everett True
Hedonism >>
