Skint & Demoralised began as a fusion of performance poetry and Northern Soul-inspired grooves when 18-year-old Wakefield lad Matt Abbott began to work with Sheffield-based producer MiNI dOG over MySpace in May 2007. Demos were written and recorded via e-mails, and in November of the same year their track ‘Red Lipstick’ was played by Steve Lamacq and Colin Murray on BBC Radio 1. Lamacq named the band at #3 in his Top 100 New Bands of the Year at the end of ’07, and by the start of 2008 their demos were nearing 10,000 free downloads.

In March 2008 they signed a deal with Mercury Records which saw them flown out to New York City to begin sessions for their debut album ‘Love, And Other Catastrophes’. They recorded with legendary soul session band The Dap-Kings (who also played on Amy Winehouse’s ‘Back To Black’) and in November 2008 their debut single sold all 500 copies of a limited 7” on pre-order. The track, ‘The Thrill of Thirty Seconds’, was named as Colin Murray’s Record of the Week on Radio 1.

A headline tour and the release of ‘This Song Is Definitely Not About You’ was followed by a hectic summer schedule – which saw the band become a hit on the major festival circuit – and in July the track ‘Red Lipstick’ was released. Despite heavy airplay on Radio 1, the track failed to make it into the Top 40 and Mercury called it a day before the album was even released.

Matt went back to his performance poetry routes whilst working at HMV, blending his material with stand-up at Latitude and Leeds Festival over summer 2010. Abbott and MiNI dOG decided to record an album of material at their home studio in Sheffield with no budget or solid plans in place, and then in spring 2011 they agreed a deal with independent label Heist or Hit Records. Second album ‘This Sporting Life’ was released on 2nd August as part of a 2CD Bonus Edition alongside the previously unreleased debut. Single ‘The Lonely Hearts of England’ saw them return better than ever and the band are completing 2011 with a full UK tour, including dates with The Crookes and Art Brut.

http://www.skintanddemoralised.co.uk/

Agent – Lee Taylor