Album Review: Skinny Hobos

After what seems like a decade of waiting in anticipation for the debut album from New Zealand’s favourite Rock duo, the wait is no more!

Skinny Hobos have been a common house hold name in the world of Rock in the last few years, and unless you live under a rock, they have quite a solid reputation for working themselves ragged gigging around our fine shores to quench the thirst of bogans, rockers, metal heads, and well, pretty much everyone and everything in between, because if you haven’t yet heard the news, Skinny Hobos really are that good.

If you’ve been fortunate enough to catch them live on any given tour date over the years, then you’ll know exactly what I mean. Skinny Hobos is Alex on vocals and guitar, and Sam on drums and sharing vocal duty too. That’s it. No smoke and mirrors, no gimmicks.

Skinny Hobos are an explosive force of noise that finds its way straight to your soul. They groove and harmonize like Jerry Cantrell and the late great Layne Staley and blow your mind with epic solos (of the guitar and drum variety) and crushing riffs that makes your limbs do this thing where they uncontrollably move on their own.

They’re a foot stomping whale of a time, extremely humble and lovely men who can bring down the roof at any venue they play, not to mention captivate the musical minds of every single punter in attendance.

Their debut is a self-titled slab of unprecedented nine songs, full of bite, which many will already know from their swag of previously released singles, The Merchant of Tirau, Suburban Living and Jokers & Fools and the newly released and crowd favourite, Jacked Like the Ripper.

Clocking in at some thirty-eight minutes in total may not seem very long, but what’s in a length of a debut, when you can just have it on repeat multiple times thereafter? (trust me on this one)

Alex and Sam are solid and captivating musicians. The way they blend and gel together onstage, or in a studio is evident and what they create is something we can all be proud of.

Opening track Sevenatenine (also a fan favourite onstage) captures that bluesy stoner vibe (‘a la Kyuss, Fu Manchu etc) signature riffs, extended solos. Everything that embodies Skinny Hobo’s presence, while Queen Street is fast, furious and in your face with its explosive tempo.

Skinny Hobo’s debut is unquestionably something you need to get behind, discover and put on repeat until you’re exhausted, and then go catch them live to exhaust yourself even more, because it’s never enough.

You know you wanna…

_{Review written by Kerry Monaghan}