Reeled and Skinned

Amazon.co.uk Critics, bless them, didn't quite know what to make of Red Snapper. Were they jazz? (They kept playing at the legendary London jazz club Ronnie Scott's.) Electronica? Trip-hop? Of course, this very contrariness was the band's great strength, lending their music a fractious, busy quality that set them apart from the vast majority of their peers. The aim was simple enough: to achieve the mesmeric textures of loops and mixes, through a clash of live and electronic instrumentation--the former including such comparative oddities as saxophone, clarinet and double bass. Mostly it worked, and the result was sublime. Prince Blimey was their first album (Reeled And Skinned is a collection of their first three singles and EPs), and the sound is often reminiscent of a late 1960s British gangster flick--an impression reinforced by titles like "3 Strikes And You're Out" and "Thomas The Fib". At other times, it imagines some inspired fusion of King Tubby, Miles Davis and Dick Dale. Indescribable, really. Ultimately, the best tag might be one coined by the band themselves: "Fuck-Off Jazz". Nice. --Andrew McGuire Product Description Out of print in the U.S.! Collection of early EPs from the Acid Jazz crew, the perfect fusion of electronics and live instrumentation. Features the rare the Snapper, Swank and Hot Flush EPs on one disc. Though they came from the Acid Jazz scene, they freely experiment with Funk, Punk, Dub, Hip Hop and Drum 'N' Bass. Nine tracks. Warp.