Once upon a time, there was Kingskin, a grunge band slightly out of time with the musical climate which wanted shiny rather than flannelly. Rather than to doggedly plough the same furrow until the world relented, guitarist Jak Chantler did something not often seen – he completely changed the genre of music he played. Now casting off his rock skin to reveal his breezy soul-pop skeleton under the guise of Short Sharp Scratch, there’s a whole new world for him to cast under his spell. A bit 70s disco, a bit poppy side of Ween, the single, Shell Suit is magnificently catchy and also manages to rhyme “shell suit” with “bullet-proof”, which is good enough for us to be convinced by them. Here are some other artists who flipped the coin and changed direction:

• Michael Bolton. Yep, everyone’s favourite high-note strangler was originally a top rocker, opening for the likes of Ozzy Osbourne.
• Beastie Boys. Now a well-known fact, NY’s golden boys started out as a hardcore punk act, less commercially successful but still a breath of fresh air
• Belinda Carlisle. Better known for her fluffy 80s throwaway pop, Belinda had a stint behind the drum kit in seminal punk band The Germs (alongside future Nirvana and Foo Fighters guitarist, Pat Smear), before joining a band who have still yet to receive the credit they deserve, even having had a biopic made about them, The Go-Gos.
• Kenny Rogers. The almost cruelly twee end of country music was, of course, a member of First Edition, whose Just Dropped In (To See What Condition Your Condition Was In) was one of the sounds of the Summer of Love.
• Daft Punk. The perma-cool French dance moguls actually started out as a punk band called Darlin’.

Listen to the new single ‘Shell Suit’ here: https://soundcloud.com/user-700614968/sets/shell-suit-release/s-3Fii1
Watch the video for ‘Shell Suit’ here: