King Apparatus

Sigh wistfully you Toronto yuppies and think back to when you had a sense of humour. Remember when the only person who'd heard of ska was that weird kid in high school you didn't really know, but always acted smarter than you? Remember when your idea of club music was the dance remix of a Foreigner tune and Toronto was a total (as opposed to only partial) wasteland of music, culture and taste? King Apparatus may have been T.O.'s only saving grace back then, and these two discs, re-released thanks to the kind folks at Stomp and Asian Man, are proof of nature's abhorrence of vacuum. These are the songs people keep coming back for, that still get hometown crowds, young and old, fresh-faced and jaded, pimply and scarred, hopping, jumping, skanking and drinking. Joining old standards like "Five Good Reasons," "King Apparatus," Solid One Love," "Hold Me Down" and "Michael and Anne" are new bonus live tracks.