Ralphy's C.D. Reviews

Review date 18-05-1999: Skunk Anansie - C.D. Post orgasmic chill

Skunk Anansie's third album release "Post orgasmic chill" kicks of where their first 2 albums ended. Raw punky rock with well thought over lyrics again feature on their newest CD. The musical quartet formed in February 1994 in London doesn't stray from their original sound and is always recognizable to their fans. Singer Skin's voice sounds as raw as ever (sometimes you think she sings a little off key, but that's just like with Guns 'N' Roses singer Axl Rose the charm of her vocal performance), Mark Richardson drumming is even more powerful than on their previous albums, especially on the fabulous first single "Charlie Big Potato" it is featured in a major way, and guitarist Ace and bassplayer give everything they got to create the typical Skunk Anansie sound, that their fans have grown to know and love.

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The general public apreciates more the ballads like in the past "Hedonism" than the heavier stuff, but the before mentioned "Charlie Big Potato" is the best example for my statement that the hard songs of SA are often even better than the softer songs. But no need to despair for fans of the ballads, there are more on this CD than on the previous ones. There is ofcourse the second single release "Secretly" (about cheating on your loved one), than you have "You''ll follow me down" (about a self-destructive person who warns his lover not to go into gutter with him/herself) and the closing song of the album "I'm not afraid", which (in my opinion) is about a playboy with fear of commitment. There are also some semi-ballads like "Lately", "Cheap honesty" (about one night stands), "Good things don't always come to you" (about thinking for yourself even in a relation) and "Tracy's flaw" (about someone who uses his (ex-)partner when she feels down to get 'high' again). The harder stuff is mainly on the beginning of the album with "Charlie Big Potato", "On my hotel T.V. (about people who tell you how to live your live 'morally'), "We don't need who you think you are", "The skank heads" (I believe the least good song on the album) and at the end there is "And this is nothing that I thought I had". The explanations of the songs are entirely on my account. I don't know if they are the official Skunk Anansie-ideas behind the songs. Some songs I couldn't get the deeper thought out of, but knowing the Skunkies there is one. They are even explained on the computer-CD part of the CD, but I don't have a computer CD-player yet. I've seen the interactive part briefly at work and it looks great although somewhat slow.

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As always there should also be some criticism. Every time when I hear a new Skunk Anansie single ("Weak", "Hedonism", "Charlie Big Potato") I can't wait to get the album that goes along with it and every time I'm a little disappointed afterwards. Not that the other songs on the albums are bad, au contraire, but I have a problem with too much Skunk at one time. I always seem to enjoy their music more in between other performers songs on the radio, at the bar or wherever, maybe that's my problem, but to listen to an entire SA album for me is too much of a good thing, that's why I rate this CD with a 7.0.

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