Music Review: The Upbeats' Big Skeleton 

From the moment I am hit with solid drum kicks and aggressive riffs on Big Skeleton's opening title track I have the feeling that I am in for an unrelenting aural assault.

But while the opening track may be a near unrelenting shock to the senses, there is certainly more to the rest of the album than a bit of crash and bash.

The intensity contained within this album should come as no surprise to see anyone who has seen the barnstorming DJ sets or powerful live shows of New Zealand drum and bass duo The Upbeats. However there is a musical depth to the album which unravels itself further with each listen.

The Upbeats showed on their last studio album, Nobody's Out There, that they are not afraid to explore some dark moods and eerie sound scapes while creating a bit of dance floor fodder and the same is true of Big Skeleton. After the all encompassing approach of creating a concept album you could forgive the lads for just wanting to assemble a bunch of tunes for this one.

While they have given themselves a little more freedom with regards to selection, it's clear that they certainly paid attention to detail regarding album craft. Even tracks taken from earlier releases such as Planet Earth fit in perfectly with the album's make-up.

It is worth mentioning the serendipitous appearance of MC Kemo, best known for his work with minimal drum and bass luminary Lynx, on Carousel. His gritty vocals complement an equally dirt fuelled instrumental backing.

Big Skeleton is a tough album to rate as it has safely found its way into the pile of "albums that will grow on you", so I'm giving it a seven out of ten with a significant chance for improvement. Ask me this time next year and the number could well be higher...

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