The Skints

In 2007 four high school friends—Marcia Richards, Joshua Waters Rudge, Jamie Kyriakides, and Jonathan Doyle—assembled The Skints in Northeast London. The resulting spirited quartet mixes reggae, ska-punk, dub, grime, hip-hop, soul, and dancehall into an eclectic sound that balances uplifting and emotionally resonant qualities with incisive, politically engaged lyrics.

Their earliest work unfolded inside the ska-punk circuit, where a self-titled debut EP and the 2009 full-length Live, Breathe, Build, Believe quickly attracted a devoted audience. That following eventually carried the group beyond the squat-party circuit into wider visibility. After issuing Part & Parcel in 2012, the band signed with Easy Star Records, the influential New York City label devoted to reggae and dub.

The 2015 album FM that emerged from this partnership earned both critical praise and strong sales, prompting an extensive U.S. tour that paired The Skints with Sublime, Easy Star All-Stars, and the Mighty Mighty Bosstones.

Four years later the quartet returned with Swimming Lessons, an introspective set that expanded their palette to include 8 Bit-influenced dancehall and melodic grunge. Guest appearances on the record came from Grammy-nominated Jamaican reggae artist Protoje, freestyler Runkus, and dub and roots reggae star Jesse Royal.