Specials - S/T - LP

Label: Chrysalis Records; Year: 1979; Format: Vinyl LP

Google this album and you will come up with a million and one stories in regard to the Specials and the 2-Tone label and movement. I will spare you any lengthy review here, but have to say that I have given this album a spin not too long ago, and have thoroughly enjoyed it. The Specials were maybe the 'punkiest' out of all the 2-Tone bands, and one of their members, Terry Hall, was even a member of Coventry punk outfit Squad. I shall review their 'Red Alert' single at another point, but that was just a little side note. The songs on this 14-song long-player range from upbeat to slow, but never disappoint as they combine danceable ska and rocksteady to perfection. "Too much too young" even reached No. 1 in the UK, and at one point the band shared the same management with the Clash as they were supporting them on a tour. No matter whether you're into punk, ska, rocksteady, or whatever, I think we can all agree that this is a classic album and should be found in everybody's record collection.

Victimize - Where did the money go? EP

Label: Last Year's Youth; Year: 2004; Format: Vinyl 7"

Victimize were one of the very few early Welsh punk acts and this EP released a decade ago packs in both of the two official releases from '79 and '80. This reissue comes in a nice 8-page booklet summing up an interesting band history, and some nice old flyers and posters are reprinted therein too. As for the music I for one conclude that only the second single, here on the B-Side, is really worth a listen. 'Where did the money go?' and 'Innocence', an adaptation of John Cooper Clarke's 'Innocent' are great KBD smashers, underproduced but delivered with high energy, anger and conviction. The funny thing about both of those tracks is that apparently none of the original band members recorded these, but some local musicians posed as the original members. Go figure....As for the first single, which makes up the A-Side on this EP, I must say I am not convinced at all. Both songs are drawn out, and even though they are not horrible per se, it seems like at the time the band didn't know whether they wanted to be a punk rock band, or play early '70s rock. Do yourselves a favor and don't spend a fortune on an original copy of  Baby Buyer/Hi-Rising Failure as it's not worth it, at least me thinks so. Get this one cheap, especially worth for the B-Side!