Various
Complete Handsworth Explosion
Black Symbol presents The Complete Handsworth Explosion 2014'S vinyl reissues of "Black Symbol presents Handsworth Explosion" and "Black Symbol present Handsworth Explosion II" LPs collected on one CD. It's hard to overestimate the importance of what Black Symbol did for their local community, in Birmingham's Handsworth neighbourhood, by providing bands with studio time at the well equipped Outlaw Studio and then releasing many of the finished results on the two original vinyl LPs. They have left us with a unique snapshot of the Handsworth scene in the early eighties; a scene that was at its creative peak but would very soon almost entirely disappear. It's never too late to discover talent and hopefully this CD release will indeed open the eyes and hearts of many to the great bands and singers featured: Sceptre, Zephaniah, Truths And Rights, Gerald Love, Mystic Foundation, Benjamin Zephaniah, Black Knight, Man From the Hills and last, but by no means least, Black Symbol themselves. The music is mostly roots reggae, but the tracks also provide a great deal of variety whilst maintaining a high quality threshold..