Somewhere in early 2002, I was lucky enough to be in attendance at the late, lamented Princess Charlotte in Leicester to see an early performance by Skindred. A band that had arisen from the ashes of Dub War, they had yet to release Babylon (a debut album release so chronically mishandled by RCA, it’s amazing it didn’t scupper the band altogether) and they played, as I recall, to a pretty small crowd. However, despite the relative size of the audience, they hit the stage as if they were headlining Wembley Arena and entertained the hell out of everyone present to such an extent that the gig was pretty much the sole topic of conversation for the next week.
The reason I relate this tale is not because “I was there, man” (although, hell yeah, I was), but rather because it goes a long way to explaining the band’s enduring popularity. Skindred, you see, never fail to bring it. And this, coupled with the fact that they pen genuinely hook-laden tunes, has helped to make them one of the most popular, beloved, and exciting live bands that the UK has produced.
And so to You Got This, the band’s ninth (ninth, really?) album and the follow up to 2023’s decent Smile. Honestly, little has changed in Skindred’s world and, with such a winning formula, it has little need to – You Got This simply does what all sequels do by amping things up to the max and emphasising all those elements that appealed to audiences last time around.
The album kicks off in grand style with the title track, which arrives in a welter of screaming sirens, tungsten strength riffs, and a hook so monstrous it could land a whale. So far, so Skindred. It’s followed by the cheeky, mid-tempo Can I Get A, which is tailor made for the live environment. Delivered with tongue firmly in cheek, the band throw everything from sampled vocals to acoustic guitars at the mix, and it’s a whole load of fun.
The band keep the party going with Born Fe Dis which does for ragga metal what Rollin did for nu metal. Gloriously over the top, absurdly catchy, and with a massive twinkle in its eye, it’s a hard-riffing, dance-floor packing beast of a song. It’s followed by the similarly addictive This Is The Sound. Based on a cool writhing riff that recalls the early days of nu metal, and with a breakdown that finds Benji grinding out “this is the sound that makes me go crazy” between gritted teeth, it’s easy to imagine the moshpit spontaneously combusting to this one. After such an opening, the bouncy ska of Broke comes as something of a surprise. Not a million miles away from Offspring’s Why Don’t You Get A Job, it provides a nice breezy break from the hulking great riffs with which Skindred kicked things off, paving the way for a diverse second act.
Next up, Skindred take things in a dub direction with the sun-kissed Glass, which finds sparse guitar lines and great, echoing dub drums giving way to a harder edged chorus. What next? Well, if you had EDM on your Skindred bingo card, you’d have had a winner, as Big Em Up kicks off with great big synth pads, although the band soon sidestep to deliver some of the album’s heaviest riffs.
With You Got This blazing a path straight to the adrenal glands, the surging riffs and diamond-tipped vocals of Do It Like This have much in common with latter-day P.O.D., the band tipping the hat to hip hop, metal, and lord knows what else as they tear through another bouncy number that is simply going to obliterate venue floors the world over. Keeping things pushed to the max, My People is a typically inclusive anthem that reminds us that Skindred is, and always has been, music for the masses, and it keeps you bouncing with a massive grin on your face. The album wraps up with the sun-kissed, reggae of Give Thanks. A charming closer, what could come off as slightly hackneyed in the wrong hands, just feels right when led by the larger-than-life, perma-genial Benji, and it ends this typically diverse album on a wonderfully positive note.
Honestly, with Skindred closing rapidly on their thirtieth year (and how the hell did that happen), you should know what to expect by now. If you’ve enjoyed their previous outings, this one refines the sense of fun still further and simple wraps you up in its massive arms. It’s fun, it’s bouncy, and it’s larger than life – kind of everything we need right now in these febrile times. Put it on, pump up the volume, and let the world melt away for 40-minutes – it’s guaranteed to leave you feeling better. 9/10
