The Skeats – The Skeats IV
December 2nd, 2023
Hard Rock / Alternative Rock / Punk Rock
Independently Released
St. John’s, Newfoundland
St. John’s hard rock power trio The Skeats are back with their fourth full length album in as many years, and, unsurprisingly, they’ve released yet another banger of catchy, well written tunes that will no doubt get stuck in your earholes and refuse to leave for days afterwards. Having reviewed the band’s past three full length records I’m well acquainted with their style of music, and it’s been an interesting journey watching these guys mature as songwriters while also maintaining a surprising level of consistency throughout their discography.
This album is, to some degree, not quite as heavy as the band’s previous record, Dead Before Dawn, which made overtures to classic heavy metal moreso than the punk-orientation of their first two releases, In the Meantime and Bulletproof… by Midnight. Still the sounds here, while certainly accessible and decidedly “easy listening” for someone who might be more into pure metal or pure punk, pack a punch and provide a sensible amount of variety for listeners all across the spectrum of the modern rock landscape.
A song like “Torch”, which was released ahead of the album, has a Billy Talent vibe to it, a band that each of the three members have pointed to as an influence before. The following track, “Daze”, is a bit softer, and feels like it hearkens back to the world of 90’s radio rock, whereas “Black Sensations” has a shit-kicking metal n’ punk attitude that reminds me of a band like Kvelertak or Priestess at points (minus the blackened vocal stylings of the former).
This album easily has the best vocal performances from both James Keats and Joshua Organ yet. James, who is the band’s lead singer, has only gotten better at singing with age. I love the moments where his vocals are layered, both over his own as well as over Organ’s, creating a chorus effect that enhances the anthemic vibe that most of these tracks possess. Organ’s harsh screams have also improved, and he is much more present on this record than any of the band’s past materials. It’s cool to see both vocalists get their moments in the sun.
The riffs, provided once again by Keats on the guitar and Organ on the bass, are widely varied, catchy, heavily melodic, and well written. There are so many great moments where the band’s riffs and vocals harmonize, like on the track “Stay Home”, that just feel so damn good to listen to. On top of that the guitar soloing, unsurprisingly, is off the charts. Keats has always been a ripper on the axe ever since I’ve known him, and the solos on here are easily some of the best he’s ever written. I also love the brief moments of acoustic flourishes added to the soundscape, like on “Chasing Angels”.
Drummer Daniel Keats has also obviously improved as a drummer over the years. While the music of The Skeats has never been overly complicated and is rather simplistic from a compositional standpoint, Daniel’s skills have been honed over the past near-decade that the group has been active, and his drumming on this album feels more confident and intentional than at any point in the band’s history.
Where this album loses me a little bit is in its runtime. Clocking in at just under 56 minutes in length this thing is a long slog to get through. This isn’t to say that the album has any filler material or “bad songs” on it. There aren’t really any tracks on here that I don’t vibe with personally. However I think for a record in the hard rock genre that boasts a punk attitude the band would’ve been better off caching some of these songs and utilizing them for an EP or another album down the road. I’d much rather have a roughly 30-40 minute release featuring the strongest songs in a “get-in-get-out” format.
Still, some of my personal favourites on this record come right at the very end of the album’s runtime. The track “Twitch” is a catchy punk rock ditty that feels like it came right out of the 90’s or early 2000’s skate punk explosion. The track “One Makes Five” is easily my favourite song that The Skeats have ever written, featuring some straight up NWOTHM riffs that feel heavily inspired by bands like Van Halen, Ratt and Cauldron. “Chasing Angels” has some of the heaviest riffs on the record as well, featuring some surprise moments of syncopation. It’s rare that an album produces my favourite songs right at the end, but The Skeats IV did exactly that.
The Skeats have outdone themselves yet again with another excellent record that mixes elements of radio rock, punk and heavy metal together in an easy to digest, accessible, and yet vibrantly catchy and energetic mixture. While the runtime is a bit of a downer, the songs are at least quite maturely written and exemplary of a band that is only going to get better with more time and experience than the past nine years have already afforded them.
Final Verdict: 8.5/10
Great
Favourite Tracks:
“Torch”
“Black Sensations”
“Stay Home”
“Fifth Degree”
“Fine Wine”
“Twitch”
“One Makes Five”
“Chasing Angels”
For Fans of:
Billy Talent
Pennywise
Avenged Sevenfold
Van Halen
~ Akhenaten
HeavyNFLD 
Pingback: January 2024 in Review | HeavyNFLD