Thursday, 6 May 2010

Review - The Slackers - The Great Rock-Steady Swindle

The Slackers - The Great Rock-Steady Swindle

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8 out of 10

With the summer seeming to be appearing earlier this year, the search for perfect summer soundtrack is well and truly under way. One possible contender comes from New York's The Slackers. Newest effort The Great Rock-Steady Swindle is a musical smorgasbord of ska, dub, reggae as well as taking influences further afield such as Motown soul and old 60's rhythm and blues. This is a strong steady album without a doubt. Indeed the songs are slick in delivery and retain a sense of New York swagger about them. The dub-heavy 'Cheated' is one such highlight of the album. As is the soulful 'Thank You'. None of these tracks would be out of place on an old Trojan Records compilation as there is a great degree of vintage Jamaican sound captured here.

With the modern ska and reggae scene being so deep with talent by the likes of Canada's Bedouin Soundclash and label mates The Aggrolites, The Slackers have their own refreshing and nostalgic niche at creating some of the best upbeat ska around. A positive output from these veterans of ska scene.

Listen: www.myspace.com/theslackers

Tracklist:
1. How It Feels
2. Because
3. Mr Tragedy
4. Sabina
5. Cheated
6. Daddy
7. A Long Way Off
8. Bo Evil
9. Tool Shed
10. Ain't No Sunshine
11. Don't Look Back
12. Anastasia
13. Thank You
14. The TV Dinner Song
15. The Same Everyday

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