Latest CD releases reviewed

SKINNYMAN
Council Estate of the Mind Lowlife
**

Pop's council estate is becoming a mite overcrowded with Skinnyman the latest tenant to move in alongside Mike Skinner, Dizzee Rascal, Shystie and So Solid Crew. Unlike them, however, there's little chance of the biting veteran rapper with a prison record finding himself on Top of the Pops in the next few weeks. Try as Skinnyman might to fashion himself as an outsider railing against the system, his rhymes are a little too earnest and read more like a hand-wringing Guardian opinion column than the Eminem he might hope to be. However, unlike other old-school British rappers like Blade, his flow is spot on and the beats possess more than enough oomph to satisfy any nit-pickers. More tracks like Life in My Rhymes and you might even want to drop around for tea. www.lowliferecords.co.uk Jim Carroll