Crybaby Special and the Monsters / Notting Hill Arts Club

‘‘They sound like Madness doing the Nightmare before Christmas’’ one onlooker comments as the venue swells beyond the full capacity. It’s okay though; the stragglers and late comers outside will get the chance to see Kent’s hardest working three piece once again. In their ten month existence they have played over 150 shows, notable performances including main support for Pete Molinari and they are fighting through an industry saturated with mediocre uninspiring up and coming bands to be the game changers – and they’re winning!

With a sound blending the best of British Ska with what can only be described as an Um-bah-bah rhythm section, they released their debut EP only a few short months ago. ‘Man In The Woods EP’ was recorded at Slaughterhouse Studios, produced by Babyshambles guitarist Mik Whitnall with Adem Hilmi engineering, it is a short blast of honest accounts, low end bass and crunching guitars based around frontman Jason Stafford’s experiences with general life and personal curiosities.



Despite the successes of this release, with the first print selling out on the night of the launch, Crybaby Special are back for more with a date booked in the studio for a not yet named single to be featured on an EP due for release in the Autumn time. Tasters have already been given live with the same theatrical escapades of Stafford ever present but the ever increasing use of falsetto coming into light, and with the band as busy as ever gigging you can expect to see a lot more from Crybaby Special with the band also return to the Death Disco once again in the not too distant future.

Their name may be a mouthful but Crybaby Special and the Monsters are a band you should get used to hearing about. With labels and management sniffing around and their continuous pursuit of improvement combined with an intoxicating lunacy there is simply no stopping this trio from conquering all of the minds with their infectious sound. Only time will tell how far they will go but only a fool would set a limit on their relentless uncompromising invasion of the British music scene.

Bill Williams

‘Man In The Woods EP’ is out now and available on iTunes and Spotify!