To coincide with the announcement of a new acoustic album, post-punk pioneers Skids have shared a new version of the classic ‘Into The Valley’: a single that originally featured on their 1979 debut album ‘Scared To Dance’.
I’m not sure how I feel about this. I mean, there are no two ways about it: ‘Into the Valley’ is a classic. One of the all-time greats. An ANTHEM. I’m not knocking performing acoustic shows – why not? There’s something to be said for hearing stripped-back versions of favourite songs in intimate venues. I even get the live acoustic album, for the benefit of those who couldn’t be there.
But then, often, you probably did have to be there. But the hits in acoustic format? I’m less convinced of the need.
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I get that the nature of ‘the single’ has changed. Plugging a specific track off an album, putting track up o YouTube on its own or recording a vide to accompany a song seemingly qualifies as a ‘single’ release now.
Anyway. It’s nice. It’s a good rendition, cleaner, more melodic, but still imbued with the sincerity if not the force of passion of the original studio version. You can’t keep a good song down. And I can’t criticise The Skids revisiting the song forty years after its original release. But it’s only ever going to be one for the fans.
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