The Selecter - Celebrate The Bullet

Without question, the song writing, performances, and production on Celebrate the Bullet are all top-notch (and the band felt they had much to prove, as they were unhappy with their debut album, which they thought was rushed--indeed, it was only a matter of three months from their entering the studio until it hit the shops). From the second you put it on, Celebrate the Bullet is instantly recognizable as a Selecter album--though they explore the more mid-tempo ska and reggae-ish aspects of their sound here--which may have disappointed those expecting the same frenetic ska pace of their debut (plus their timing was off; by the time Celebrate the Bullet was released--ska was out, the New Romantics were in). Most notably, The Selecter's lyrics this time out are much more sophisticated, and vividly convey the apocalyptic fear and dread of that period, when the threat of nuclear annihilation seemed more inevitable than ever with the election of cold warrior Ronald Reagan in the US, whose rhetoric and policies toward the USSR at the time only served to ramp up the friction between the superpowers. All in all, Britain--if not civilization itself--seemed to be teetering on the edge of the abyss, with everyone seemingly powerless to stop the plunge into darkness. Ska and reggae have a long and commendable history of speaking out against social injustice, which The Selecter uphold brilliantly on Celebrate the Bullet. It's just a damn shame that more people didn't tune in to receive the music and the message.

Ripped from the expanded CD release to mid-tempo FLAC

The Selecter; Celebrate The Bullet

1.       (Who Likes) Facing Situations

2.       Deepwater

3.       Red Reflections

4.       Tell Me What’s Wrong

5.       Bombscare

6.       Washed Up And Left For Dead

7.       Celebrate The Bullet

8.       Selling Out Your Future

9.       Cool Blue Lady

10.   Their Dream Goes On

11.   Bristol And Miami

12.   The Whisper

13.   Train To Skaville

14.   Last Tango In Dub

15.   Train To Skaville (12” Version)