The Bangladeshi-Irish south Londoner’s urgent debut album laces trauma and social commentary with bouncing melody and retro stylings.
Recorded in Abbey Road with co-producer Blue May, Skin takes in soul, jazz and trip-hop, and more than fulfils her early promise.
Skin is a triumph for Joy Crookes, who pulls from a wide variety of influences and stories to bring an album that indicates a lot of potential.
Joy Crookes has a captivating voice, rich with emotion. She definitely shows the influence of those London soul artists that came before her, particularly Amy Winehouse, I even think there was a lyrical reference to her in ‘Unlearn You’ when she sings “I’m back in black again”. Speaking of lyrics, the lyrical theme of skin reappears throughout album, a nice idea to tie the whole project together. The string arrangements were nice at first but I think they became a ... read more
'Skin' it's the most classical soul/r&b album that an UK artist could make at the moment. The comparisons with Amy Winehouse will be quoted obviously, but there's many more women in Soul music that could be credited here as well. Joy Crookes feels like the type of singer that is missed in the spotify charts and radio nowadays, her cadence is solid and so it's the vocal delivery in every track, the record has a nice pace just cause she knows how to manage the words, with the right amount of ... read more
"Skin" is the debut studio LP from Joy Crookes, and honestly for a debut album, I'm quite impressed with it. Her vocal strength is showcased here very well, with the production being more laid back her voice shines on all of the tracks. When it comes to songs on their own, I think most of them were quite good, there are some that I found to be a bit meh, but there are also some amazing songs. When I think of the songs in the context of cohesiveness it is a mixed bag, due to me not ... read more
The production is consistent throughout, and while I don't dislike any of the songs, some of them are in subgenres that are not my style. This album isn't perfect, but it gives a taste of an artist that π§π¦π¦ππ΄ capable of creating many potentially perfect albums. And that's all you can ask for from a debut project.
Great debut. Groovy, soulful, cheeky tunes that serve to introduce an artist with a lot of personality and a lot to say. Those horns on "When You Were Mine" will always get me I love it.
1 | I Don't Mind 2:54 | 76 |
2 | 19th Floor 3:09 | 86 |
3 | Poison 3:31 | 76 |
4 | Trouble 3:04 | 78 |
5 | When You Were Mine 3:23 | 86 |
6 | To Lose Someone 4:10 | 78 |
7 | Unlearn You 2:42 | 78 |
8 | Kingdom 3:08 | 78 |
9 | Feet Don't Fail Me Now 3:18 | 87 |
10 | Wild Jasmine 3:35 | 75 |
11 | Skin 2:58 | 79 |
12 | Power 4:42 | 81 |
13 | Theek Ache 2:10 | 81 |
#14 | / | Dummy |
#21 | / | Clash |
#23 | / | The Vinyl Factory |
#33 | / | The Line of Best Fit |
#34 | / | Double J |
#41 | / | NME |
/ | BBC Culture |