Skunk Anansie are celebrating 25 years since the release of their debut LP, “Paranoid and Sunburnt”. Rather than taking the popular approach of playing that record in full, they are using the opportunity to honour the catalogue they have built up over that period. Lead singer, Skin, tells the sold out crowd that they have more than 70 songs to choose from so they are “going to have fun” tonight.
Indeed, the band play something from each of their six studio albums as well as their latest single, “What You Do For Love” which is far more thunderous in a live setting than the recorded version which premiered on Radio 2 last month.
It’s an indefatigable, vibrant show. Mark, Cass and Ace emerge first and kick into third album opener, “Charlie Big Potato”. One thing is instantly noticeable – it is loud. In a time where a lot of venues and festivals have been criticised for poor sound levels, it’s delightful to see people immediately reaching for ear protection upon realising there would be no such problems tonight. It’s a perfect opener – it gives the band a chance to show just how accomplished they are as a live unit, exceptionally tight and thrillingly loud (did I mention that it was very loud?)
Then there is Skin – ageless and remarkable, her voice is one of the most impressive you’ll hear in a live setting despite her telling us that she has laryngitis tonight. She effortlessly darts between the delicate moments of “You’ll Follow Me Down” and “Because of You“, the powerhouse vocals in “Weak” and “Secretly” and the all out screaming in “Yes It’s Fucking Political”.
It’s a masterclass in how to front a band – equally comfortable climbing into (or onto) the audience who grab her legs and raise her into the air as she is stepping to the side to allow her band members the opportunity to shine.
Skin points out that it wouldn’t be a Skunk Anansie show if they didn’t play something new. She warns us that “This Is War” does not yet have a recorded version and has the ability to “tear your fucking face off”. She’s not wrong – the song is as urgent and muscular as the heavier moments from the back catalogue which follow such as “Intellectualise My Blackness” and “Tear the Place Up”.
Despite this desire to present new material, the band don’t shy away from the hits that catapulted them to Glastonbury headliners in the 90s. Whereas many of their contemporaries appear dismissive or even embarrassed by their big radio hits, Skin explains that “Hedonism” is a special song that changed everything for them. It is a stirring and impassioned singalong which threatens to overpower the speakers.
Still drawing huge crowds throughout Europe, Skin explains that they are often asked how they feel about Brexit. She touches on the band’s immigrant roots and there’s a rallying cry for community as she suggests “first they come for the blacks and the gays and the Irish and then they come for you because you listen to the music of the blacks and the gays and the Irish but if we all stick together, they can’t touch us”.
25 years on and Skunk Anansie‘s politics and live shows are as strong, relevant and necessary as ever.
