[.ca] Original Pirate Material

Chronique amazon.fr:
"The future of dance music" (NME), "Album of the year" (The Times), "Shakespeare for clubbers" (Mail on Sunday), "The sound of the future" (Jockey Slut)... Est-ce pour ne pas faire mentir l'intégralité des journaux anglais que la critique française à décidé d'être aussi unanime à son tour ? C'est une question qu'on est en droit de se poser lorsque l'on se penche sur le cas The Streets. Encensé, notamment après son passage aux Transmusicales de Rennes, Mike Skinner, l' unique protagoniste derrière The Streets, post-ado de vingt- deux ans, fut considéré comme LA révélation 2002. Non loin de l'univers d'un MJ Cole, Mike a composé des bandes-son originales et prenantes, aux couleurs tantôt cinématiques, tantôt funk, jazzy ou encore electro, sur lesquelles il pose son flow bon enfant, empreint d'un accent de banlieusard londonien particulièrement prononcé (l'équivalent du titi parigot), véritable marque de fabrique qui finit de conférer à ses morceaux une personnalité unique. Question rythmique, les beats dépassent très souvent les simples vibrations hip-hop préférant, à l'occasion, la 2-Step ou encore le broken-jazz. Rien d'étonnant lorsqu'on sait que Mike est aussi un fan de house et de garage. À l'heure où la culture "street" inonde l'Occident, à commencer par l'Angleterre, les textes, souvent ludiques et jamais prise de tête, ne s'enferment pas dans un mono sujet revendicatif et hargneux, mais racontent le quotidien de n'importe quel gamin anglais préférant célébrer le groove et l'optimisme malgré tout, à l'image du titre qui clôt l'album (un des plus poignants du disque) : "Stay Positive". --Luc Demont

From Amazon.co.uk:
In a thrilling UK Garage scene, blighted only by a reliance on drippy soul cliché and tiresome braggadocio, The Streets' eminently quotable Mike Skinner may just be the voice to take it to the next level with Original Pirate Material. This debut is a staggeringly eloquent and fearlessly honest snapshot of gritty street-level existence, as experienced by an ordinary bloke. At first listen, the Birmingham-born Skinner's cheeky cockney affectations grate slightly. But for every line that makes you squirm, there's 20 that drop your jaw. "Has It Come To This?" is "A day in the life of a geezer", a seductive encapsulation of London lifestyle, presented raw as a bootleg, but bulging with sharp wit and feverish detail. "Stay Positive" weaves a fearful tale of heroin addiction, Skinner sneering "I ain't no preaching fucker/ An' I ain't no do-goodie-goodie either/ This is when shit goes pear-shaped". And "The Irony of It All" presents a beguiling case for legalisation, presenting a fictional exchange between a beered-up, self-righteous lager lout and a fey student weed enthusiast. Original Pirate Material is a milestone, the real voice of British youth set down on record. Don't miss this.--Louis Pattison

Interesting:
Alright because people dont buy CDs because of kazaa and everything CD prices are dirt cheap. I was in some record store and I saw this for 10 bucks. I thought that cover art was cool and looked like it was european so I bought it. I was not really sure what I was in for. At first I was like man this really blows! The guy is rhyming off beat and that accent! But after a second pass I was like damn. The reason its off beat is because he raps between the beats. So its still in beat, but this gives it a very unique sound. The beats are catchy as hell and seriously good. No way to describe them they are kinda old school east coast/undergroundish Gangstarrish with a little influence of euro house, but not really. The rapping is by a white english guy, I was like WTF. But after a little and listing his rhymes they are really good, different but good. This is not like something you would bump in you car at all so dont expect it to be; its more like sitting in you room apperciating the art of music and beats. Takes some listing to and being open in terms of what rap is and what it could be. Trust me these guys are onto something. Buy it to support the cause, but remember this not like anything you have heard in terms of what rap is.

Awesome:
I don't listen to much of this type of music but was listening to the Electronica channel on Spinner and heard these guys. I was almost immediately hooked, checked them out on the net and ordered the CD. Its hard to explain why I like this. There's a refreshing honesty here as opposed to the typical posturing and bravado generally associated with this musical genre. The samples/beats/hooks are cool as well ... lot of creativity here.

Absolutely Amazing:
I am absolutely in awe of this album. I heard/saw the video for Let's Push Things Forward earlier this week, and I immediately fell in love with the song. I got the album today, and I can compare my feelings about The Streets to my feelings of bands like Jesus & Mary Chain and The Clash and spoken word artists such as William S. Burroughs. I'm definitely feeling it, every word, every lyric penetrates my being.

A Needed Change:
Like new underwear, a fondue restaurant, and snow in July, The Streets (aka Mike Skinner) is a fresh and needed change in today's rap culture. Rapping about anything from London Bridge to the cosequences of being late to the irony of what kind, considerate, and intelegent people are actually in prison, this CD is the best I've head in a long while. After 6 months, I'm still not tired of it. I recomend this CD to anyone whose life's gone pear-shaped or who just want to push things forward. You'll understand later. Buy this CD. You know you want to.

"Excells in contents and deliverance":
"This ain't a track, it's a movement". Sign me up! I burned this album from a friend who had just returned from Paris this past summer. I heard it once and knew Mike Skinner was onto something huge. He remains faithful to his British accent and his lyrics ring true to what the streets are all about. It isn't about American suburbia...welcome to a world beyond our white picket fence.

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