The Selecter - Subculture

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A few new sounds you need on your radio! 

The 2-Tone legends are back with a brand new album, over twenty five years after their first release they are still producing great material. One of their classic hits ‘On my Radio’ may have recently been all over the TV courtesy of a dancing pigeon but now they want to get everybody else dancing with some tunes for all the rude boys and rude girls out there. They seem to be a band that is always well received at live events and I am sure this record is much anticipated among their legions of followers.

It may come as no surprise that from an act that always seem to be prefixed by ‘2-Tone legends’, or similar, they have not decided to do a concept album of EDM fused with Death Metal. What makes you legends in your field is doing what you do very well and they offer more of what has made us love them for so long. Opening track ‘Box Fresh’ has a mix of reggae with the traditional Ska sound and of course the amazing vocal sound of Pauline Black.

Alongside Pauline Black has of course been Arthur ‘Gaps’ Hendrickson who makes a large contribution to the this album adding to the vocals in tracks like ‘Open Goal’ and with more of a freestyle feel in ‘Breakdown’. While it has The Selecter sound all the way through, the range of ways they have used that sound just keeps you wanting to hear the next track, from moments that you just want to get up and dance to mixed with more tender moments. They always have something to say about life or the world around us which again keeps you listening.

With their own amazing song writing on show, they also give a nod to another classic act with a cover of ‘Because The Night’ by Patti Smith, which to me is just how a cover should be done, keep the essence of the original while putting your own stamp on it. Better than the number of acts that just copy. This has been their essence for the last twenty five years take the sound and run with it to make something magical and they have certainly succeeded with this album. It would be easy to just tour the hits and people would keep coming to see them, but why do that when you have such creativity and still make tunes that sound 'Box Fresh'.

Review by Jon Cooper 

Check Out! the Video for 'Box Fresh' Below...