Skank Attack

THOSE WITH A penchant for local music history may be intrigued in a forthcoming first-time release by defunct 1980s Wellington band Skank Attack of a whole album’s worth of material.
The first single, ‘Down Around Our Ears’, will be released digitally on February 1, 2012. Recorded in 1988 with producer Nick Roughan (Skeptics) at Writhe studios (owned by Bailter Space drummer Brent McLaughlin), the single is a reaction to the “wholesale demolition of large numbers of beautiful Wellington landmark buildings” that was going on at the time. “It was often done under the guise of mitigating earthquake risk, but appeared to actually be more about profiting offshore investment companies. The irony is that gems like the low-rise Majestic theatre were bulldozed to make way for monstrosities like the Majestic Tower, which has now been identified as a high-rise earthquake risk after assessments made in the wake of the Christchurch earthquake. So the song still feels quite relevant to us.”
The group, which built up a following around the country at the time, but broke up shortly after the recordings were completed it 1988, says it’s releasing the recordings now because “we got excited about using digital outlets to get the music out into the world and claim our place in New Zealand music history.”
They point out that the name Skank Attack is a reference to Jamaican music (even though their musical influences are “new wave” groups like The Clash and Echo & The Bunnymen), and not a derogatory reference to a certain type of female.
Skank Attack have created a website – www.skankattack.com – on which they plan to include amusing anecdotes and perspectives on the NZ music scene of the ’80s.