Track of the Day: Skinner - 'Commander Trainwreck'

DIY slouch rock musician Skinner (Aaron Corcoran) is back with another grungy, new wave banger: 'Commander Trainwreck'

The 24-year-old has nailed a specific, nostalgic sound while infusing the experiences of young adults in Ireland to his lyrical arsenal. Throwback guitar riffs of the '00s and Britpop '90s mingle with background instrumentation that challenges expectations.

"Maybe just another day of laying in bed will recover all the nutrients that leak from my head/my mind is stale, my skin is pale, I'm staying up late watching internet fails," the guitar-driven song starts. "Slowly drag my body from the back of my room, I'm so sick of everybody telling me that I'm doomed."

Following recent single 'Dog Daze' - inspired by the 1975 Sidney Lumet film Dog Day Afternoon, starring Al Pacino - 'Commander Trainwreck' is about that strange period of purgatory when you're in between jobs you don't like, exploring what you really want to do with your life. Late stage capitalism at its finest makes you yearn for productivity but all you feel the ability to do is stay in bed all day. Ah yes, burnout. A familiar feeling.

About the song Skinner says, "It all started when I was let go from my shitty office job that I hated. At the time I thought, 'This is great, I’ll just take some time off and spend it writing loads of music then I’ll get a new job', but it didn’t really work out that way.

"I ended up sitting around the house all day in my underwear watching stupid YouTube videos and becoming really depressed," Skinner adds. "Time is a funny thing, when you have it you waste it and when you don’t, you feel like you’re wasting it. I didn’t know what I was doing with my life. I was sleeping for 16+ hours a day and not seeing anyone to the point where my dreams felt more real than my reality. I think everyone around me just thought I was becoming this huge waster but the truth was that I was dealing with some complicated stuff and I needed that space to figure it out.

"I invented the character of Commander Trainwreck as a way of embracing my situation. I wanted other people to know that it’s okay to fuck up and if you need some time, then you need some time. I think everyone needs to be Commander Trainwreck at some point in their lives."

Skinner harbours the DNA of no wave and post-punk acts like The B52s, James Chance and the Contortions and ESG through to alt-rock touchstones Pixies and Morphine combined with an talent for grunge-nodding self-production and elevated instrumentation.

Singles 'Commander Trainwreck', 'Dog Daze' and 'The Slump' follow the Gunge EP on 12” vinyl, a collection of five singles released from 2019 to 2021, available now on Bandcamp from skinner97.bandcamp.com.

Previous singles ‘Dislocation’, 'Beer Me, Jim', ‘Sometimes My Brain is Goo’, ‘Slouch’ and ‘Headroom’ were compiled on the Gunge EP, a 2021 vinyl release. The songs make Skinner a Hot Press’ Hot for 2020 act two years ago.