Robin Skinner (aka Cavetown)
is only 21, but Sleepyhead is already
his fifth album. From age 16 he’s followed a DYI path to success via means that
old people like me can’t fully understand: hit YouTube channel, self-releases
on bandcamp, Twitch live shows. His fanbase is now, apparently, bigger than many
mainstream stadium acts (although I suspect how true that is may depend on how one
measures a fanbase). Anyway, all that passed me by: Sleepyhead –
his major label debut – is my first exposure. It is certainly not revolutionary
but it is of very high quality. Skinner mixes lo-fi indie rock with ukulele
ballads, sitting at all times pretty squarely in the ‘singer-songwriter’ bracket.
Although he’s British, a key influence to Skinner’s sound is clearly the Midwestern
US lo-fi scene of the 90s and noughties, but he adds a new modern (and
European) flavour. Emotionally fragile but unguarded, and self-consciously woke,
this record was made by and for people a lot younger than me. But, age notwithstanding, I’ve just loved the quality of the songwriting. And it’s also nice to know the
internet is making stars of people who care about far more than merely that
stardom.