All About Class

Here’s a couple of Oi! punk bands throwin’ it down 90’s style. I’m not sure what it is about Jersey – something in the water, or maybe something in the beer – but Jersey Oi! is consistently some of the best. Both of these recordings are compilations of the work of the respective bands. And both are patriotic, working class, and soaked in beer. They’re fast, they’re pissed off, they’re American Oi! done old school style.

Squiggy: A band I can never get enough of. Someone had the brilliant idea of slapping all their 7″ records onto one CD, and the result is the recording we have here, All 7 Inches. These tracks are from records originally released between 1996 and 2000, but put together here in reverse order chronologically. Plus a few live tracks at the end. You get a couple of repeats in there, but it’s a raucous ride through the musical history of the lesser known Oi! greats Squiggy. It’s Old Time Hardcore for boot boys, and it rocks the fuck out. Get it!

The Outsiders: A band that’s just like the last one – and that’s a good thing! Of course we can tell them apart musically; there’s a different style of vocals here, and whereas Squiggy has a hardcore punk thing going, The Outsiders have a more rockabilly vibe. But the attitude and the energy hit with the same impact. It’s fast paced working class rock ‘n’ roll and it don’t take no shit. I’m pretty sure the two bands shared members somewhere along the line, as well as putting out the split record Pull the Trigger together on Squigtone. Those tracks are featured here on From Liberty to Death: The Complete Recordings. I can’t vouch for the completeness of it, but you also get tracks from their Don’t Tread On Me EP, three different comps, and some unreleased tracks too. All the original records came out between 1998 and 2000. Grab ’em all in one place here.

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Both of these recordings were released by Working Class Records in 2010. Cheers to them for making these two compilations of American Oi! history available. Between the pair you get a Woody Guthrie cover, a song from the Romper Stomper soundtrack, and two Dion covers. Fuckin’ Oi!