Giant Step

There’s just something about Ska (the music, not the telescope) that seems to bring out people with an agenda. Maybe it’s just the juxtaposition of hard hitting words with soft and friendly beats, but you rarely hear a Ragga/Ska act singing about their bling, or the “hoes in dif’rent area codes.” It’s a connected sound, and one accepted by the struggle the world over.

Trenton and his Free Radical cohorts’ first studio album is no exception, with topics like Madiba, township hardships and other uniquely South African problems, as well as Capitalism, Racism and other worldly worries.

What sets them apart from other acts coming through SA is their very traditional arrangements, and Trenton’s acerbic observations of situations around him, delivered in his very un-ragga singing style. “Tomorrow’s Day” has been playlisted on a few SA radio stations, and it’s a good snapshot of the album, with 13 home-brewed tunes and a few hot remixes of their more popular tracks included in this 20-track first effort. Worth a listen if you’re a fan of the genre, and another fine example of the standards our local music is now regularly achieving.