Today's highlighted Madison musical act is The Skintones.
Delivering high-grade hard rock to fans and astonished bystanders alike for years, The Skintones are geared up to unleash their latest round of devilish compositions they describe as "psychofuzzcore for your squishy parts." Respected as rocking both stages and records, the three-piece band is delivering both this weekend.
Here's their registry biography:
The Skintones were formed from the remnants of various dysfunctional Madison bands, which, in their own peculiar ways, experienced varied degrees of success on the international music scene.
By day, the three members of the Skintones make their livings performing fairly unremarkable jobs for fairly unremarkable employers, but when gathered together for their weekly Wednesday evening rehearsals, the Skintones indulge in a highly unedited and improvisational style of music they lovingly describe as "eclectically pleasing." Otherwise, they usually try to avoid one another outside of rehearsals and shows.
The Skintones freely range across the spectrum of musical styles, but always remain grounded in their own perverse blend of punk and metal. Call it "munkal." The Skintones are musically familiar, yet stunningly indefinable, and they prove that rock can sometimes be smart, but overall, it's really quite stupid. But that's OK. Sometimes it's more fun to be stupid.
Consisting of Pete Ross (guitar, vocals), Gavin Lefebvre (bass, vocals), and Tony Leskinen (drums, vocals), The Skintones just completed their latest album, titled This is Science. Their third release on Madison's Crustacean Records, the album features ten new songs including one of their latest live favorites, the hard-thrashing "S.L.A. Sick Leave Abuser." It was recorded at Master Blaster Studios on the near east-side of Madison, and produced by Travis Kasperbauer, Jesse "Beef" Gantz and the band itself. Guests appearing on This is Science include the ivory tickler Harris Lemberg, the one-and-only Mr. Blues, and its co-producer Kasperbauer.
This album follows The Skintones' previous two Crustacean releases, Rock Scene Problem and Never Get Better, the latter of which is reviewed by a listener who describes the band as "rough and tumble, straight forward minus the bullshit, cocky, and above all, [bearing] the talent to back it all up." In 2005, Never Get Better won that year's Madison Area Music Award for Metal/Hard Rock Album, while the Skintones themselves also picked up the MAMA for Metal/Hard Rock Artist. More details about the band's early years after formation in 1998 is described in a early 2003 feature in the monthly regional music magazine Maximum Ink.
There are four songs on the band's MySpace page, all representative of their explorations from the foundations of punk and metal. They include the aforementioned "S.L.A.," as well as "Don't Do It," and "Down South" from This is Science. It also features "H-Bomb," an older song the band describes as: 'The predictability of humanity's proven predilection for destroying each other and their environment in the name of religion, nationalism or whateverism." There are more details about the band available at theskintones.com.
The Skintones are celebrating their new album with a release party on Saturday, Nov. 11 at the High Noon Saloon. Playing with The Goodyear Pimps, Bible of the Devil, and Cats Not Dogs, they're asking patrons to "come one, come all and raise your fists, raise your pints, and lower your pants and your standards" at the show. The Skintones also promise "some surprises and special guests" at the party, which is discussed here on TDPF. This is their last currently planned performance in Madison for a month. In mid-December, they'll be returning to the Saloon to unleash a volley in the war on Christmas.
This is the latest featured entry from the Madison Music Project, an online database of Madison-area musicians. Please register or update your current profile on the project for consideration in these highlights.
