Skint & Demoralised + Orange 38 + Plug Factory + The Basement Project

SKINT & DEMORALISED began in late 2006 when Matt Abbott started writing and performing spoken word poetry in the West Yorkshire area, mainly in random bars and venues. An offer of collaboration came via MySpace in May 2007 from Sheffield-based MiNI dOG, and before they'd even met in person, a songwriting partnership was formed.

In November of that year, Steve Lamacq played their demo on BBC Radio 1. After signing a deal with Mercury Records in March 2008, they flew to New York City in June to start recording our debut album 'Love, And Other Catastrophes...' with legendary soul session band The Dap-Kings at the Daptone Studios in Brooklyn.

Their debut single 'The Thrill of Thirty Seconds' was released on 17th November through London indie label Another Music = Another Kitchen. All 500 copies of the signed 7" vinyl sold out on pre-order. The second single 'This Song Is Definitely Not About You' is a full non-chart eligible release on 2nd March through Mercury Records and pre-order links are in the Blog.

Some more interesting facts about Matt Abbott - teenage lyricist, pop star-in-waiting and one half of emerging studio duo, Skint & Demoralised:

#1 At the age of 16, perennial school skiver, Abbott dialled into the poetry of John Cooper Clarke and Linton Kwesi Johnson, writing verses and performing spoken word slots at gigs. You may have seen him on Sheffield's then flourishing indie pop circuit - he was quite the crowd pleaser.

#2 By 17, Abbott had flirted - somewhat briefly - with politics during visits to a number of regional conferences. The vibe was always the same, however: "If you've got morals then you have to compromise them for success in politics," he says. "It was all fake and bullshit. You've got more chance changing people's opinions on a rock'n'roll record than standing up in a bad suit in the Houses Of Parliament."

#3 Barely into legal drinking age, Abbott met with former Sheffield singer-songwriter and faceless studio whizz, Mini Dog to record a series of spoken word demos over several guitar tracks under the name Skint & Demoralised. Nine thousand downloads on MySpace later, the pair had scored a major label deal and were being championed by Radio One's Steve Lamacq. Meanwhile, Abbott was performing live in front of 4000 people at the Love Music, Hate Racism festival in Rotherham.

Clearly, these are not the antics of your normal teenage tearaway. But then, Skint & Demoralised's recording output is hardly your stereotypical pop producer-meets-songwriter studio collaboration. Fuelled by Abbott's heartfelt poetry - which draws inspiration from lyrical heavyweights Bowie, Mike Skinner, Eminem and Squeeze - their debut album, Love And Other Catastrophes is a rush of Johnny Marr guitar riffs and drive time friendly harmonies. Chuck in some killer choruses and you've got one of the sun-dappled pop albums of the year.

"It's like a northern soul record," says Abbott. "I want to hear three minute pop songs that are packed full of emotion. It's got to be about falling in love or falling out of love. The song has to grab me straightaway, otherwise I'm not interested. I think we've recorded an album that captures that sugar rush."

The nuts and bolts of this pop ethic can be found in the working relationship of Abbott and his mysterious studio partner, Mini Dog ("Nobody can know who he is," says Abbott. "He wants to stay out of the limelight - a bit like The Stig on Top Gear"). Having scoured the internet for potential vocalists, Mini Dog stumbled upon Abbott in 2007. The teenager had been causing a stir with a series of spoken word shows in Sheffield and his emotional verses and heartfelt delivery seemed perfect for Mini Dog's guitar demos.

Sharing musical and lyrical ideas over the internet, the duo began sketching out a handful of tracks. "I was writing lyrics from the heart," says Abbott. Mini Dog was taking my words and putting them over these tracks and it sounded amazing. We both loved the same bands - Arctic Monkeys, The Smiths, The Stranglers and pop acts like Robbie Williams - so it sounded perfect almost immediately."

The success of these recordings and a flourishing online fan network quickly alerted Radio One DJ and unsigned band champion, Steve Lamacq. Within days, they were receiving national radio airplay while being tipped as one of the best unsigned acts. "It all went crazy," says Abbott. "After that we signed a major label deal with Mercury."

The next step to pop domination? A trip to New York to record some tracks with legendary session musicians, The Dap Kings, better known for their studio craft on Amy Winehouse's Back To Black album. "We thought, ‘Who's the best backing band around right now?'" says Abbott. "Once we realised it was The Dap Kings, we figured, Fuck the credit crunch, let's go to New York!"

The resulting Love And Other Catastrophes is an album that swings with groovesome brass, heavyweight guitar hooks and a raft of memorable vocal lines that recall lost loves and criticise bitter enemies. "One track is even called This Song Is Definitely Not About You," says Abbott. "It's about a former friend who let me down, but let's just say that people will know who he is. I just wanted to write an album full of songs with instant catchiness like The Beatles' Taxman or Jean Genie by Bowie, but also songs that mean something to people".

"But essentially, Skint & Demoralised is built around a poet from Wakefield and a songwriter from Sheffield making weird quirky pop music. Somehow, it seems to work just fine."