The Red Dirt Skinners
Album: Sinking The Mary Rose
Label: Self Released
Tracks: 10
Website: http://www.reddirtskinners.com/

England appears to have a bit of a golden age of blues orientated male-female duos at the moment and if this latest cut from The Red Dirt Skinners is anything to go by, that looks like something that's going to be continuing for a fair while yet.

"Sinking The Mary Rose" is an album of delightful contrasts featuring both raw and at times almost ragged examples of the genre and running them back to back with slower, almost mournful examples of the genre, with sax breaks that just pull on the heartstrings.

At times you could argue the album drifts into elements of jazz and gospel, neither of which is a bad thing, but one that continues to add to the shades that permeate throughout. Similarly contrasts are further enhanced with the variety of the vocals deployed, not just the male female dynamic, but also the way the voices are deployed and accented for increased impact.

Soundwise and lyrically, the album tends to reference the poor South of the US rather than English terminology which creates a bit of a juxtaposition with the more English undertones to the instrumental breaks, in short an album that constantly sets new expectations and delivers to them, whilst ensuring that it's mercurial nature makes it hard to pin down.

By the time you reach the track the album derived it's title from, "Not The Mary Rose" with it's refrain of 'take me home' you feel you've been on a journey that's taken you down a real backwater or two, but as any accidental tourist will tell you, that's where the interesting stuff is.

Neil King