Bim Skala Bim – Bim Skala Bim
welcome back to the Skaject folks! since there is no weekly review this week, we’re taking a second Skaject entry and looking at the debut record for Bim Skala Bim, a Boston band that formed in 1983, inspired by the two tone sound in England. they put out their first full record, Bim Skala Bim, in 1986. let’s check in out!
The Key is an extremely pleasant opening track – musing on how folks get pigeonholed into shitty situations and how there’s always a path forward. nice the first time around, but after hearing some of the other tracks on subsequent listens, a very strong thematic start, haha. Better Get Out is another track about impending nuclear war! gotta love having that hang over your head! i like Balance – it’s got some visual metaphors that aren’t always great, but i agree with the track broadly, and i like the back and forth of the vocalists here, haha. Chief Inspector is a p solid track about surveillance state living! gotta love it! Jah Laundromat begins Side B with a more positive, uplifting community track. i wanna go to Jah Laundromat, haha. Solitary Confinement is aight. i feel kinda mixed on it – musically it’s a p solid track, but i’m not huge on it lyrically. i like Silence quite a bit – clocking in at over 5 minutes, it feels like a meatier heart of the record here in the back half. Fear No Evil takes a page out of The Key’s book, and is a shorter, punchier track about gearing yourself up mentally for resistance. the horn lines are… a bit not my style but overall a good track. Cool Nights is aight. Not a Test is a nice, short closer, a bit of a call to action. p good!
faves – The Key, Balance, Jah Laundromat, Not a Test
dislikes –
i really dug this record! lotta reaction to shitty economic and social situations, bringing in a punky ethos i really enjoy, even if it musically lines up closer to the two tone/reggae vibes of the music that inspired the record. definitely worth a listen, and it makes me very excited to hear more from them!
Bim Skala Bim – 7/10
next Wednesday we’ll be back with the Skaject, checking out Fishbone’s first full album, In Your Face.
previous: Mental Notes | next: In Your Face
in the meantime, we’ll go back to our normal Friday schedule for now!
i’ll be back on Friday, July 14th with a review for Miracle Musical’s Hawaii Part II, released in 2010. i’ll also be picking a record for the following week, and this suggestion was the only one in the pool, so please let me know what albums you’d like me to review! (i pool all suggestions in one place, and draw a person, then one pick from that person, so feel free to drop as many as you’d like! if you leave an email or username i’ll contact you when i’ve gotten through all your suggestions.)
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