Skindred / Blackgold / Cody Frost - The Garage, Glasgow Saturday 21st October 2023

Now, it would be easy for me to say at this point that I returned home and immediately made efforts to find out everything about this Skindred band and their music, starting an obsession that continues to this day. But that would be a complete and utter lie. The reality is that I failed to check them out in any way, shape or form and it wasn’t until around 7 years later that they appeared on my musical radar again with the release of 2011 album Union Black. Even then, it was a recommendation from a friend. However, I immediately recognised the name Skindred and knew that I had first heard it mentioned in Newport, their hometown, several years earlier. From that point on, I followed their career fairly closely. Maybe not as a superfan… but certainly as someone who appreciated the unique sound that Benji Webbe (vocals), Daniel Pugsley (bass), Mikey Demus (guitar) and Arya Goggin (drums) were creating; a sound that has now spanned 8 albums, countless impressive live performances and a steady rise to national recognition.

It’s fair to say that 2023 has been quite a year for Skindred. The ragga-metal rockers have played several prestigious festivals, including Download and Glastonbury, supported rock legends KISS on their final U.K. Tour, achieved number two in the U.K. Album Charts with latest album ‘Smile’ and even made an appearance on the BBC’s Later… With Jools Holland show. So, it’s no surprise that Newport’s finest are finishing the year with a sold-out U.K. Tour of their own, including a show at The Garage, Glasgow on a cold Saturday night. Yes… that’s right. Skindred… in Glasgow… on a Saturday night. Surely this would be a show that would be so loud and raucous that it would shake every building in Sauchiehall Street to their foundations?!

As in pretty much every city, Saturday night is party night in Glasgow (it’s also alright for fighting!) and you can’t have a proper party without something to warm you up beforehand. So, the Skindred juggernaut rolled into Glasgow with two support acts: Cody Frost and Blackgold. First up was Cody Frost, a young woman who fared well in series 5 of talent show The Voice. Cody has released a number of singles, as well as the album Teeth in 2022 and was lauded as “the future of British music” by Benji Webbe at an earlier show on the tour. She took to the stage with attitude and swagger only 20 minutes or so after doors opened but still drew a sizeable crowd, allowing her to showcase several songs from her catalogue and teasing new track “Wot?’, which is due for release this Wednesday (25th October 2023). There’s a really punky yet incredibly atmospheric sound to her music, with lots of aggression and angst. We all hear music differently but for me, it’s Paramore crossed with Enter Shikari, with some Killing Joke and Depeche Mode thrown in before being mixed with a Courtney Love and Avril Lavigne hybrid. It’s something completely fresh and different for the UK music scene and I dare say she’s one to watch for the future. Cody ended the set by simply dropping the mic and strutting off stage with attitude before the crowd even had a chance to applaud.

Blackgold’s social media bio states that they are “your mum’s favourite Nu metal band”. Well, I can’t speak for every mother but my mum is 74, sings in a church choir, thinks Rod Stewart is hard rock and still draws me a look when I fail to wear a nice pair of slacks for Sunday dinner… so I’m doubting she’ll be remotely interested in this London-based band’s brand of rap-cum-hip-hop-cum-metal. As they took to the stage and immediately hit the audience with a wall of sound and jumping around, an old school friend who I’ve known for the vast majority of life and who I randomly met within the venue asked “Is he wearing a gimp mask?” before quickly concluding “they’re not my cup of tea”. But the number of hands moving back and forward in unison and pogoing to the heavy beat indicated that they had won over a sizeable chunk of the Glasgow crowd with a sound reminiscent of the pure rage of Sepultura combined with full throttle Rage Against the Machine and even a smattering of heyday Limp Bizkit. Their set was largely made up of songs from their two EPs, Blackgold and Volume 2, with ‘Freak’ going down particularly well. “I say black, you say gold” instructed the masked singer, fully encouraging crowd participation before asking “Do you want to hear us fuck up Cypress Hill?”, and thereafter covering the Californian hip-hop group’s ‘I Ain’t Goin’ Out Like That’. Similar to Cody Frost before them, they walked straight off the stage as the last song faded, without so much as a wave but I dare say a few people will now be checking out their releases after one of the angriest, yet strangely entertaining performances I’ve seen in a while. There was a lot of swearing and much flicking of the middle finger but the majority of the Glasgow crowd appeared to approve. Oh… and it wasn’t a gimp mask! The stage lighting just didn’t help to make the QAnon-style mask overly obvious!

Skindred understand the importance of audience participation and that all started before they even hit the Glasgow stage. The PA volume was gradually increased as Queen’s classic ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’ and Ramones ‘Blitzkrieg Bop’ blasted over the speakers, encouraging a mass sing-along. But that was nothing compared to the noise that echoed around the venue as AC/DC’s ‘Thunderstruck’ with added lightshow, eventually made way for the ‘Imperial March’ from Star Wars, indicating that Skindred were ready to rock. Mikey, Daniel and Arya were first to appear, playing the simple yet heavy riff to ‘Set Fazers’, one of the singles from new album ‘Smile’. Benji entered the stage, resplendent in black and proceeded to blow the audience away from the outset with some throaty ragga rapping (is that how you describe it?), whilst showcasing the pitch perfect clarity of his singing voice in the song’s impressive bridge section. It was straight into ‘Babylon’ from the 2002 debut album of the same name before ‘Ratrace’ from fan favourite album Roots Rock Riot. Great way to start a set!

Before ‘World’s on Fire’, Benji took certain stage to start a chant of “the world is burning”, encouraging it to be louder and better with his usual brand of humourous verbal abuse! But the cry of “wankers” clearly worked as the next bout of audience participation was much more enthusiastic, with a high pitched “whoop whoop” that Glasgow’s stray dog population would’ve heard from a mile away, leading to the catchy ‘That’s My Jam’. A short break for some Dub Step mixes teased the crowd with Proclaimers, with Benji eventually bursting into a loud chorus of the Scottish band’s ‘500 Miles’, much to the exhilaration of the Glasgow crowd. One thing about Scottish crowds is that they can turn peculiarly tribal when it comes to all things Scottish. It doesn’t matter if it’s something you’d normally hate in everyday life. Mention it or play it during a concert in a Scottish venue and the lion rampant is released in all of us! Skindred knew that… and that’s the beauty of their stage show. They know their fans.

It's not all heavy riffs and throaty ragga and that was no more apparent than during a rousing rendition of ‘L.O.V.E. (Smile Please)’, a song that literally makes me smile every time I hear it. There was a real feeling of fun and love as hands waved side to side and the extravagant singer donned a striking pink hat and it was the type of music that offered a contrast to next song, the doomier almost-ballad ‘If I Could’. This is a song that very much shows the more commercial side of Skindred and allows Benji, Mikey, Daniel and Arya to show a different side to their song writing talents. For me, it remains one of the strongest songs on the ‘Smile’ album and it didn’t disappoint in a live setting.

2014’s fist pumping ‘Kill the Power’ raised the roof but tempo slowed with a heartfelt rendition of the wonderful ‘Life That’s Free’, a song that started with only Mikey on guitar and Benji’s flawless vocals before the rest of the band joined to see the song out. What made it even more emotional was Benji explaining the background to the song and how it was inspired by the hopelessness of addiction… but sadly I couldn’t hear the full story due to the constant loud chatter of a large percentage of the audience, something that even the singer briefly commented on. This is something that is becoming more and more prevalent at live shows of all musical genres and frankly is becoming a right pain in the arse! Folks… if you’re going to a show to chat over the singer and musicians and not to listen, do us all a favour and stay at home! Rant over! The raucous ‘Nobody’ with the famous repeated “nobody gets out alive” lyric segued into ‘Gimme That Boom’, a song that literally caused a boom as the Garage floor shook and rattled as the crowd bounced. The fact that this is already a fan favourite is a clear indication of the strength and quality of song writing on the Smile album. It was a great way to end the main set.

There was of course an encore, starting with the manic ‘Our Religion’ and ending with ‘Warning’, the set’s only representative of the Union Black album. This was the moment the Glasgow crowd had been waiting on; an opportunity to be part of the now famous Newport Helicopter! But beforehand, we were instructed to get down on the floor, ready to jump up when the intro music instructed us to do so. Now, I have to confess that my 42-year-old arthritic knees and hips prevented me from getting down too low and it must’ve been obvious to the young boy in front of me, who looked at me with kind eyes and proffered very seriously “Don’t worry. I’ve got you. I’ll get you up” before placing a hand under my arm in support. Frankly, I didn’t know whether to thank him or punch him!! Alas, he was saved by the crowd jumping to their feet and pogoing wildly to one of the greatest songs in Skindred’s arsenal of music. The Newport Helicopter is one of the greatest ‘gimmicks’ (if that’s the word) in encouraging crowd involvement. It’s so unusual and different and is undoubtedly one of the most anticipated parts of a Skindred show. Men and woman held pieces of clothing above their heads, awaiting the instruction to swing them around like a helicopter rotor blade. I managed to refrain from removing my own top, sparing my fellow concert goers the nightmare that they wouldn’t have been able to unsee, instead swinging a snood above my own head. The experience was wild and exhilarating, with hoodies, sweaty t-shirts and other probably unmentionable pieces of clothing swishing through the air and whacking me several times on the face and head. The air was so densely populated with clothing that I couldn’t actually see the stage and had no idea that Skindred had been joined on stage by the support acts! Wow! Then it was over, as Carly Simon’s James Bond theme ‘Nobody Does it Better’ played the band off stage, the Glasgow choir shuffled back outside into the cold air of Sauchiehall Street.

It's hard to believe that Benji Webbe has been active in music since around 1998 and that Skindred in their current form have been together for over 20 years. But that’s why they are such a magnificent live band. They weren’t gifted success on reality TV shows or via commercial radio exposure. Oh no, they did it the hard way, gaining credibility with club shows and a succession of recorded material that got better with every new release. That’s what made ‘Smile’ and number 2 album in the UK Album Chart and that’s what led to an appearance on the iconic Later… With Jools Holland on BBC (ironically, broadcast to the nation at the very time Skindred were onstage in Glasgow). Skindred are a band who have honed their stagecraft to perfection and when that’s combined with some of the most unique music around at the moment and a frontman that knows how to entertain and work a crowd, it makes for a special live experience. It was loud, it was raucous, it was breathless, it was hot and it was sweaty. It was everything I want in a live rock show! As Carly Simon said… “nobody does it better”… and after witnessing the Glasgow show, it’s hard to disagree.

The ’Smile’ tour continues until the end of November, with dates remaining in Brighton, Sheffield, Lincoln, Cardiff, Belfast and Dublin. Skindred’s latest album, Smile, is available on Earache Records.