Journalism / The Business - Mean Girl (Bad Dog Records)

Not actually an album, but a genuine collection of treats for fans of the band often accredited with helping to pioneer the Oi form of punk. Three covers of varying origins and five live nuggets unearthed from their 1982 performance at the London Marquee club. Kicking off with an obscure choice of the Status Quo song of the same name as this CD, the energy is abundant, and great versions are done of ‘1-2-3’ and ‘’Till The End’ by The Pistols and The Bruisers respectively. As someone who wasn’t even born at the time of their milestone London gig, I can only assume that the importance that this band had on the waves of punk that followed is not an exaggeration. The excitement and power of a band in full flow is captured well in ‘Harry May’ and ‘Suburban Rebels’ and it does feel that the gig in question is as special as the inlay notes make out. Not to be written off as one for the elder punks, the raw simplicity of hardcore and Oi still has much to offer. And 26 years later, it hasn’t aged badly at all.

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