Buffalo Tom were the sort of band that seemed to be on the verge of a major commercial breakthrough through much of their 1989-1998 recording career without ever quite catching the brass ring, despite the consistent strength of their music. When Buffalo Tom rolled back into the studio to record 2007's Three Easy Pieces after a nine-year layoff, it sounded like the work of a band that reunited because it was what the bandmembers wanted to do, not because they were counting on a major payday, and 2011's Skins even more clearly reflects this attitude. While Buffalo Tom can still rock out and their songwriting chops are in great shape, Skins is a personal and introspective work. Skins is the product of an older and wiser trio than Buffalo Tom were in their salad days, but it's unmistakably the same band, and if their attack and their concerns have changed a bit with the passage of time, that's a reflection of their innate honesty as much as anything else; they simply are who they are, and on Skins that means they're a gifted and grown-up rock & roll band.

Track Listing
1 Arise, Watch
2 She's Not Your Thing
3 Down
4 Don't Forget Me
5 Guilty Girls
6 Miss Barren Brooks
7 Paper Knife
8 Here I Come
9 Lost Weekend
10 The Hawks & the Sparrows
11 The Big Light
12 The Kids Just Sleep
13 Out of the Dark