Skindred have been around, making a glorious racket for what feels like forever, fusing rap, rock, and reggae. So, yes, they are a UK-based fusion band and their riff-roaring sound remains fresh on their sixth album Volume. Singer Benji Webbe, he of the big, confident, and room-filling personality, spoke to ARTISTdirect’s Amy Sciarretto about why Skindred haven’t toured the U.S. in several years, how Skindred have successfully navigated the ever-changing music industry and record label microcosm, and why everyone is welcome at a Skindred show. Oh, and he also revealed why it’s important tell your loved ones that you do.
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Amy Sciarretto: Skindred seem to be consistently active, even with label changes and general music industry changes. How do you survive it? Is there a secret or a formula?
Benji Webbe: The music comes first. We love the music we love making. Ours is not music you can get bored of. We’re not in a scene. We’ve been doing this a long time with the same members. We love what we do. The record company thing? We could give a s**t about it. They are like buses. They come and they go. One driver is great. The next one is a prick. We would love to make a relationship with a label, but they often see us as something we are not. We draw on everything from Frank Sinatra and Slipknot.
AS: What’s new or different on your sixth album Volume? Are you sticking with the signature, of rock and reggae, or are you trying new things?
BW: What works for us… what we just realized after all these years, is that life works for Skindred. We had no company behind us, saying, ‘You need a radio song!’ That was beautiful, not having that voice in our heads. Through the whole process, we said, ‘Let’s pretend we are a new band.’ People hear the metal and the reggae and the drum and bass and think ‘What the f**k is that?’ But one thing about Skindred is that we are a live act.
Bring your mother or your father and they will be like, ‘I like that band.’ That’s the mentality we bring into the room. When I listen to the album, I know that it has the live energy that we are known for.
Security guys at festivals and at nightclubs. They tell me, they’ve seen all the cool bands… but they don’t have what we have. It makes me feel good that people will watch us, even when they are not into the music.
But yes, we bring the live energy to the album! That is what we want to do. It’s a bunch of songs and riffs and heaviness and Jamaican bulls**t that I do; we just deliver.
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