Ska samplers are hit-and-miss affairs by definition, and international ones even more so -- if the American and British ska scenes are uneven, imagine what Sweden's is like. Or Russia's. But the quality of this collection is consistently high -- from Australia's Porkers to Germany's elder ska statesman Dr. Ring Ding, the 21 artists collected here maintain a surprisingly high standard. Japan is represented by Rocking Time, who deliver very nice old-school reggae on "Kimi To Kakayoku (You Are My Girl)," and by the notorious ...
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Ska samplers are hit-and-miss affairs by definition, and international ones even more so -- if the American and British ska scenes are uneven, imagine what Sweden's is like. Or Russia's. But the quality of this collection is consistently high -- from Australia's Porkers to Germany's elder ska statesman Dr. Ring Ding, the 21 artists collected here maintain a surprisingly high standard. Japan is represented by Rocking Time, who deliver very nice old-school reggae on "Kimi To Kakayoku (You Are My Girl)," and by the notorious Rude Bones, whose "Where Are You Now?" is better-than-average punk ska. Germany offers the Busters (live), Dr. Ring Ding (both solo and, even better, in collaboration with the venerable Judge Dread), the Hotknives, Mr. Review, Spitfire, Intensified, and Skaos (whose track is, inexplicably, hidden on the CD). Bad Manners is present in a very cool remix of "That'll Do Nicely," and even France (never exactly a hotbed of world-class ska) distinguishes itself in the persons of Spook & the Guay ("Anti Racist Soldiers") and Skaferlatine ("Louise"). Highly recommended. ~ Rick Anderson, Rovi
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