Are there better ways to love and offend? Basic desires start to bend.“ Quivering on a rope between the beginning and the end. Fannies flashing like neon signs, a stained glass view of their behinds. On the shirttails of bachelors putting up a fight. The song’s only lyric, which is sporadically repeated throughout the track, is “ I zigged when I shoulda zagged.” The delicious ska tune “ Quivering On A Rope” seems to touch on the soul-crushing aspects of casual sex and one-night stands: “ Rummaging for love on a Tuesday night. In spots, the melody sounds like a slowed-down version of the 70s disco hit “T.S.O.P.” by MFSB, which also happens to be one of my all-time favorite songs. “ Rumble” is a fascinating reggae track with soulful and jazzy cinematic overtones, thanks to a colorful mix of brassy horns, flutes, organ, and funky bass. You won’t get paid no, you won’t get paid.” I haven’t got a pot to piss in, yet you want me for next to nothing. And on “ You Won’t Get Paid“, the bouncy ska groove contrasts with the caustic lyrics addressing the drudgery of dead-end jobs with little pay: “ I’ve been shovelling shit for far too long. On “ A Place Like This“, they rattle off a litany of bad behavioral choices to a lively zydeco soundtrack. They also have a penchant for combining fun, upbeat melodies with darker lyrics. Despite Rock’n’roll right-wingers are singing.” The lyrics seem to address income inequality: “ Parties of the rich over the wall. I love the skittering beat, exotic Caribbean sounds and delightful female vocal trills, punctuated with some marvelous guitar work. Zen Baseballbat’s skill for using all sorts of fascinating instruments, textures and sounds is showcased on the cool, psychedelia-tinged gem “ Over The Wall“. After a good old kick in the feelings, my heart still beats like a militant drum. Don’t hold back, don’t go with the punches. The lyrics speak to standing up, speaking out, and fighting back against oppression and injustice: “ This ain’t no place for sweet-tempered voices. Now that we’re suitably alarmed, they launch into “ Retaliation” a terrific ska number with bits of punk, psychedelic and new wave, giving it a sort of lively B-52s vibe. We don’t want to scare anybody“, but then the band quickly informs us “ There’s gonna be trouble“, which they repeatedly affirm throughout the bouncy reggae tune simply titled “ Trouble“. The album opens with a man speaking the words “ We don’t want to do anything to scare your children. Additionally, several other vocalists and musicians contributed to the album, including Jane Anderson, Ayshea Elfer, Jessica Wilkinson, Isabelle Wilkinson and Tony Nipper.Īll 14 tracks are solid, but I’ll touch on my favorites, as well as those I feel are integral to the album’s overall narrative. on bass & backing vocals, Jordan Donaldson on keyboards & backing vocals, Mike Wilkinson on drums, Jonathan ‘Jogga’ Parker on guitar & backing vocals, as well as Anoushka Wittram-Gleavey and Colin Mackay, who produced Better Ways To Love & Offend.

Fast forward another 10 years, the Gleavey twins reformed the band with a new lineup and a newfound burst of creativity. Over the next 10 years or so, they released an EP and two albums, but eventually disbanded in the late 2000s.

Can’t go forward, can’t go back, so we might as well just sit and watch the bombs fall.” They deliver their message with hilarious yet biting lyrics and a delicious blend of ska (itself an eclectic mash-up of Caribbean mento and calypso, American jazz and R&B), electro, punk, new wave, reggae, zydeco and dub.īased in Widnes, England, a mid-sized city bookended by Liverpool and Manchester, Zen Baseballbat was originally formed in the early 1990s by twin brothers Gary and Carl Gleavey, along with several other musicians. Now they’re back with a delightful new album, which they’ve cheekily titled Better Ways To Love & Offend, calling it “ a slap in the face, a wake-up call to rip us from the stasis we’ve ghosted into since recession and Brexit took hold. When I last visited British ska-punk collective Zen Baseballbat this past January, I wrote about their brilliant album Rations, which I described as wild, zany, fun, and as thoroughly eclectic as any record could possibly be (you can read my review here ).

Zen bat