Customer Reviews

Give Em the Boot 2

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

OK, no one's done a track-by-track review yet, so here goes:

1. Intro- Just a couple seconds of snarling cats. Yeah. -/10

2. Gang's All Here- Anthemic, enjoyable drinking song: what else do you expect from DKM? 9/10

3. Riding the Region- Also known as 'The Region' off Push 'n Shove. Great trad-ska song that'll be stuck in your head for days. 10/10

4. If the Kids Are United- There's been a lot of complaining about this Sham 69 cover, but I think it's just as good as the original. Anthemic, but really bad lyrics. 9/10

5. Nocturnal- Not a huge fan of psychobilly. At least the country influence is muted here. Pretty good song. 8/10

6. Can't Stand It- As another reviewer said, the dancehall/dub thing isn't their best. Check out their earlier stuff. 8/10

7. Tell Me What You're Feeling- Dancehall artist Mad Lion teams up with Rancid. The result: not too good. 6/10

8. Goin' Out- Decent shout-along song. Don't like this band much. 7/10

9. Bad Gadjit- I LOVE THIS BAND! Their blend of ska, blues, 1950s rock n roll is amazing. 10/10

10. LA Girl- Pretty good song, but her voice is grating. 8/10

11. X-Ray Style- Not gonna rate this one. Too unique. World music influences shine on this mellow song. RIP Joe Strummer.

12. Misty Days- Reggae legend Banton and Rancid: should've been better. 6/10

13. The Fool- Solid trad-ska from Slackers side project. Hepcat's Greg Lee sings. 9/10

14. Bruk Out- The best dancehall/Rancid collaboration. A lot of people disagree, but I love it. 9/10

15. Have the Time- Anything by the Slackers is outstanding. 10/10

16. Crack Rock Steady- YESSSS! From the streets of New York comes that crack rocksteady beat. Funny song (just don't take it seriously). Best from CV (too bad they broke up). 10/10

17. Forget Yourself- Forget this track. Forget this band. 5/10

18. Crack City Rockers- Choking Victim with a new drummer and new name. Still keepin that crack rockstaedy beat. 9/10

19. Fools Gold- Solid. Great band, but sometimes sound like Clash wannabes. 9.5/10

20. Rent for Sale- By INDK. Skwert and Ezra of CV's new band. Check em out. 8.5/10

21. Flight of the Phoenicians- Take the vocals and horns out of Hepcat's sound and you get Vanity 5. Good instrumental, but sounds a little weak. 9.5/10

22. Life Won't Wait- Excellent ska song. Great way to close the album. Buju Banton guests. "The vision is the new world order..." 10/10

I highly recommend this to anyone who wants to find some good ska and punk. However, I would've liked tracks from Pressure Point (a great oi band on vol. 1) and SOMETHING from King Django. BUY IT NOW!

This is my favorite out of the Give Em the Boot series. I think it's the perfect mix of punk and ska, and the track selections were excellent. It's one of my favorite compilations to listen to on the road. There isn't a song on it that a generally skip, which says a lot for a compilation cd. There is great variety, but every song is good.

Imagine your coolest friend made you a mix of great NEW ska and punk tunes. And you loved every song. This is that tape. Tim Armstrong is that cool friend. If you love anyone from the Sex Pistols or the Clash to the Specials or the English Beat, you'll find a lot on this disc to enjoy. Buy it. It's cheap too.

Punk-dancehall baby! Rancid are fostering a whole new incredible genre, and this comp is almost like a work in progress for that style. Buccaneer, Nocturnal (aka Mad Lion with Rancid), Buju Banton.... damn straight! Other highlights -- the Distillers (Tim Armstrong's wife's band), Joe Strummer, the Slackers and of course the incredible DKM song "The Gang's All Here." These songs along make this comp worth the $5.

rancid+mad lion+buccaneer+buju banton+pietasters+dave hillyard rocksteady 7+ cobain (not on cd)+rhcp (not on cd)=HEAVEN

I love almost all of the songs on this cd. All the Rancid/(insert dancehall group here) tracks are crazy! (in a good way). Dancehall vocals with punk rock energy is definitely an interesting twist that works well. Actually I don't care that much for the one with Buju Banton, but that's just because somehow it makes me think of Sugar Ray, and that is *not* a good thing. I loved, or at the very least liked or tolerated, everything else on here. The Dropkick Murphys, The Gadjits, Joe Strummer, The Distillers, and of course Rancid all put out some great tracks here. The whole Distillers being Tim's wife's band thing is kinda weird, because she actually kinda sounds like him in a way. The track annoyed me the first time I heard it just because of her voice, but I really like it now. She sounds like some sort of Lint-ette or something. Maybe more of a mix of Courtney Love and Tim Armstrong, even though that sort of sounds like an insult. I haven't really heard much of the dropkicks' new stuff other than the song on here, but I am a fan of their earlier work, and they were one of the main reasons I bought the album. "Do Or Die" is a great album too by the way. And if the first volume is better, as other reviewers have said, then I'm going to have to backtrac and get that one too...

I LOVE HELLCAT RECORDS. There. I said it. Why? Because they keep putting out high-quality music such as their "Give 'Em the Boot" compilation series. The second offering in said series is good, but not quite great. It offers a HUGE view of Hellcat's range of bands, but unfortunately, many of the bands' best styles on the album. Rancid, a good band with a decent range, is essentially allowed five songs, possibly to sell more copies. The Pietasters, a HUGELY UNDERRATED and MEGA-TALENTED band, are only given one song, and the dj/dub style isn't their best style. Having heard all of their albums, they're better with trad ska or slightly more picked-up stuff. And the Slackers song, while good, isn't close to the best song on The Question. Boot 1 offered a much better approximation of the bands' talents, with far fewer clunkers- and Boot 2 has PLENTY of 'em (Nocturnal, The Distillers, Buccaneer). But is Boot 2 bad? BY NO MEANS. Where it glows, it SHINES. The standout track on the album is Joe Strummer's "X-Ray Style", an amazing accomplishment that makes me covet the album vociferously. And there's plenty of other good stuff on here, too: Dave Hillyard Rocksteady 7's "The Fool", Mouthwash's "Fools' Gold", Tiger Army's "Nocturnal". Likewise, bands that represent themselves do so with great gusto: the Gadjits' "Bad Gadjit", Hepcat's unreleased "Riding the Region", Choking Victim, pick up Boot 1)... So, in conclusion, it's worth buying. Even though it doesn't shine as brightly in as many areas as Boot 1, it's still worth a buy if you like punk, ska, or good music.

Of the three give em the boot cd's, this one is the best. Almost every song is good, and with the variety of styles, such as punk, reggae, and ska, it makes a good party cd. A step above the first Give em the boot cd, and way better than give em the boot 3....a must have for any punk fan.....a classic compilation album!

first off i'd like to respond to the person who said rancid had 5 songs(not really)on there probally to sell more records! tim owns/runs the label so he can do that if he wants! also some of the songs with rancid backing are not that new(the buccanear track is from 1998-they also had a video for it,wich time directed and rancid were in..it was on mtv twice on 12o minutes! )also i've heard many people complaing about rancid covering sham 69! they've been playing the song live for years now! ok now then on to the rest of the album! this cd lack some of the punch that the 1st had(there seems to be less punk on this one! )i was happy to see that joe strummer was added(i would have liked to hear another one of his demos! but x-ray will do-by the way i'm a huge clash fan! )the choking victim song is cool(i'm still wondering why the two songs they've had on these albums don't sound anything like their other songs! i'm also wondering why they're still using the name c.victim-i heard they changed they're name a few months back! )unlike the 1st cd most of the bands on this album are on the hellcat label(the 1st had alot that were not! )but hey thank god for hellcat records! they price they're comps. cheap(whoever says that rancid sold out are competly stupid! -not to many punk/ska albums out there are this cheap)tim has always keeped it indie(even though rancid had a brush with fame! )go get this and the other boot cd! also make sure you check out some of the bands albums that are on this cd(i really recomend joe strummer's album! )also be on the lookout for the new rancid album in march!

Of the Give 'Em The Boot albums this is simply the best and certainly one of the best punk samplers ever. It is a great mix of crusty punk and ska. It showcases the best bands that Epitaph has to offer. This is a must have for any punk or ska fan.