When Mike Skinner released his first single, many years ago, it seemed like a very typical, and yet energetic and interesting part of the evaporating UK garage scene of the era. His second single, however, showed why the first was interesting - because Mike Skinner, aka The Streets, wasn't just doing archetypal garage music, according to 'Let's Push Things Forward' he knew how to do a pseudo-ska track. Trying his hand at a variety of genres and mixing them all into one would take years to be properly formed into the up and coming 'grime' style that had a moderate impact at America's South By South West festival this year. Despite a tour de force of a debut album, Original Pirate Material, Skinner made only a moderate impact with his record that seemed to polarise anyone who'd heard it, but slipped by too many that should have heard it. His second effort, A Grand Don't Come For
Free, was a much bolder attempt that could almost be described as a rap opera - each track another instalment in a hip-hop soap opera around a probably mythical Skinner character: it would be on this album that his first single would achieve some notoriety, but his ballad 'Dry Your Eyes' would prick up the ears of most of the nation until it was everywhere on radio, music television and compilation albums.

While this may have been a brilliant thing at the time, certainly Skinner deserved his new-found fame but it left a certain question lingering - how can the street-rapping chav hero continue to make albums about common life in his new found celebrity. It is on this note that we arrive on his third LP, The Hardest Way To Make An Easy Living which sees him depart from his trademark street-life subject base. Certainly hearing someone who picked a group name that symbolised what his music was about suddenly talk about the hardships of being famous was going to be an experiment. Sadly, that experiment failed.

Perhaps it is a little harsh to call it a complete failure, the album isn't by any means awful and at least contains the variety that a lot of
indie-rock is seriously lacking at the minute. But then again indie-rock
knows what its good at and sticks to it, it worked for Oasis. The odd thing is, though, that its not so much the subject shift that has made this new album awful but it seems that Mike Skinner himself has changed - his voice is different and less endearing than the romanticised street rat he used to be. Furthermore, the production methods seemed to have adopted an imitation 'raw' sound, rather than the raw imitating professional sound of the previous two, and by far superior, records. While, Skinner has kept a lot of his punch line quips and witty topical references, the music fails to draw in the interest that it should, certainly much more emphasis should have been put on the background beats when making this album.

One major part of this album that fails in comparison to before is
storytelling. There is none. While some people cannot tell stories in songs, The Streets' dexterous line delivery made this probably their best style of song, but alas this latest work comes across more as contemplative poetry put to music. Not a bad album, worth a listen if someone has a copy but Streets fans should approach it with caution as it will disappoint.

The Corner of Chaos
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