As everyone who reads this site and their grandmothers know, the UK has a large and vibrant ska scene. Even after the ska explosion of the late 90s, and through all the trends the noughties has thus far thrown at us, it has maintained an off-beat in pubs and clubs across the land. However many of the bands within this scene suffer from some off-putting flaws. As well as a tendency to have a kind of naïve kooky-ness to their nature, the fact that so many acts seem content to create a sound completely derivative of the likes of Rancid, Operation Ivy and The Specials often hampers their cause.
3 Minute Warning on the other hand have avoided these pitfalls. Their sound, whilst often being very poppy, feels distinctive. The vocals have a rough, street punk edge to them, but instead of just copying Tim Armstrong’s numb-tongue style they sound more defined and are not americanised. There’s nothing original about their music but it has its own slant. They make heavy use of keyboard and effectively so, creating catchy and powerful melodies. The bassist is a key part of it all; having absolutely nailed the style the band aim for he provides each track with a shimmering under-current that fills it with energy.
This full length varies from dancefloor anthems like ‘Sussed Out’ and ‘Can Of Worms’ to some sweet chilled efforts like ‘Anti-Social Day’ and overall highlight ‘Hangover’. Watch out for some sombre, surprisingly sombre, Joy Division style backing vocals too.
Do The Dog Records
Alex