Band: Matt Skiba And The Sekrets
Release: Babylon
Release Date: Out now
When news of Matt Skiba of Alkaline Trio’s side project started to trickle through, the news was met with a large sense of intrigue about what direction he was heading in. The mystique around the side project only increased when photos started appearing online of Skiba dressed like a native American. However, despite his choice to take a break from the Trio and his new found penchant to dress like an extra from Pocahontas, ‘Babylon’ is in fact not a far cry from Alkaline Trio at all.
Unless informed otherwise you’d be easily forgiven for mistaking any songs on this album as songs by Skiba’s more established outfit. As well as the obvious (such as the distinctive vocals), musically The Sekrets deal in a similar punk vein. This is hardly a bad thing on the whole as Alkaline Trio are one of the best and in many respects most underrated punk bands on the planet, their trademark big choruses packing a welcoming punch on the likes of album opener ‘Voices’ and ‘The End Of Joy’.
The main difference of note between this album and the trademark Trio sound is the recurring presence of synths on ‘Babylon’. Never before has Skiba’s self-proclaimed love of the likes of Joy Division been more apparent than here. The electro tinges swell and build on the album flowing through the likes of ‘Falling Like Rain’ which has a surprising (yet not bad) Killers feel to it.
The only real flaw with the album is that despite having a lot of similarities with Alkaline Trio, Matt Skiba And The Sekrets lack some of the attributes that made Skiba’s other band so great. ‘Babylon’ often lacks the edge heard on the likes of ‘Crimson’ and ‘From Here To Infirmary’: the guitar tone feels cleaner as opposed to the more familiar barbed wire riffs and bassist Dan Andriano’s alternative vocals feel sadly missed.
Furthermore despite packing albums full of pogo-a-thon moments, Alkaline Trio often juxtaposed these moments with dark, blood-splattered and at times downright disturbing lyrics. There is nothing quite as unsettling as the grim lyrics of ‘This Could Be Love’ (in which Skiba nonchalantly sings “I shat the bed and lay there in it, thinking of you wide awake for days”) to be found on ‘Babylon’ which leaves it feeling a bit tame in comparison.
In summary: while ‘Babylon’ is a solid album it is a little disappointing that Skiba didn’t take more risks or deviate too far from the template of his day job. With that said Matt Skiba And The Sekrets have delivered an album that a lot of people will love. However, casual fans and those less familiar with Skiba’s work may be best off sticking to the Alkaline Trio back catalogue while patiently waiting for Skiba to release a new album with Dan Andriano and Derek Grant.
7/10
Reviewer: Gavin Lloyd
