Alibis are co-vocalists and guitarists Richie Skint and Harvey Lee from South London: 22 years old, and two quite distinct personalities (one’s a former roofer influenced by Otis Redding, and the other was working in insurance and drawn to the likes of The Clash or Richard Hawley). Their first track, ‘Only Time’, is effectively a love song for a former sweetheart (which reminds me a bit of Alex Turner’s ‘Submarine’ soundtrack), taken from an EP themed around a coming of age – and musically inspired by that mix of sounds/personalities. It’s recorded live in their bedroom so is pretty raw, but obviously they’ve got a great team around it so hopefully it stands a good shot.
Alibis have announced plans for their debut ‘Home Truths’ EP, also premiering new song ‘Only Time’ today. Having recently opened for The Strokes at Hyde Park’s British Summertime Festival, the pair will next play the infamous Blue Flowers night at The George IV on July 16, with further festival and headline appearances to be announced shortly. The ‘Home Truths’ EP is available for free download now via .
Born out of a long-standing friendship in South London, Alibis is a charismatic new duo made up of Richie Skint and Harvey Lee. Raised on the old-school US soul of Otis Redding, Richie left school and confesses to telling a pack of lies to get an office job, before returning from a period of travel to work as a roofer. Harvey, meanwhile, grew up on the classic indie of The Clash or Richard Hawley, but was preparing himself for life in the insurance game before he was introduced to Richie. The two flipped a coin over who would play rhythm guitar, and Alibis was born instead.
Alibis’ appropriately-titled debut EP, ‘Home Truths’, was written, recorded and filmed live in Richie’s bedroom, with the pair sharing guitar parts, vocals and the overlapping influences of classic Soul combined with quintessentially British storytelling. Lyrically, the duo’s early material waves goodbye to adolescence: ‘Only Time’, for instance, is a melancholic love song for a former childhood sweetheart, whilst ‘Soundtrack’ provides a singalong-snapshot of growing pains, and reaching 22 without regrets. The results are already affecting, intimate and suggest that Alibis have come of age in more ways than one.
