Sounds

REVIEW: Skinny Bros’, “Party Gras”

by Darcy MacDonald

A rock/reggae/hip hop/soul/funk hybrid by Montreal’s Paul and Chris Cargnello.

Skinny Bros, Party Gras (independent)

Skinny BrosThere’s a lot to discover on the latest from Skinny Bros, a local band helmed by Montreal sibs and seasoned songwriters Paul and Chris Cargnello, the immediate takeaway being: “These dudes definitely know their shit.” The 1990s was a period of musical hybridization, the side-effects of which were often mind-numbingly awful, but for musicians of a certain pedigree, raised in that era, there holds a challenge to doing it all, at once, and making it work. It’s nearly impossible, and that’s what makes it fun. By engaging a who’s-who of local instrumental and vocal talent — not to mention Danish harmonica master and War co-founder Lee Oskar — the brothers and their collaborators manage to move in and out of genres from rock, to reggae, to hip hop, soul, funk and beyond, making it sound effortless despite how much heart obviously went into the grooves. Party large with these Bros.

8.5/10

Trial Track: “B2B”

Posted in Sounds

by Darcy MacDonald

Contributor
Darcy MacDonald has been with Cult MTL since day one, a decade ago. Which means today, he’s a middle-aged white guy (albeit one more interested in other people’s ideas than in his own). He was previously a columnist and reporter for Montreal Mirror, and has also created content (FKA “written”) for RBMA, Noisey, Montreal Gazette, The National Post and probably some other great places he’s forgotten about. Music, culture, community and miscellaneous questions in search of answers all come across his desk, sooner or later.