The Members were one of those groups that kinda fell into the gray area between punk and what was called new wave, being a tad too gruff and “street” for the skinny tie crowd and too musically sophisticated to be easily lumped in with the great mohawked unwashed. Nonetheless, they managed some popularity, due in no small part to the fact that that had some really good tunes that drew from the same influences and were as diverse in sound as anything The Clash ever did—and yet sound only remotely like them. These reissues of their first two albums feature some of the group’s best work, from punk anthems like “Solitary Confinement,” “Sound of the Suburbs,” and “Muzak Machine” to reggae-spiked ditties like “Offshore Banking Business” (which the band played live in the movie Urgh, A Music War) and “Clean Men.” Of course, Captain Oi has added assorted singles tracks and alternate versions to each reissue, including a personal favorite, “GLC,” a punk raver that rivals your average oi tune and was featured on the Rock Against Racism comp many moons ago, and the simply marvy “Disco Oui Oui,” which is exactly what its title implies.
–jimmy (Captain Oi)