The Kang Gang

Emerging from Newcastle Upon Tyne in the first half of the 1980s, The Kane Gang were similar in style to the likes of The Blow Monkeys, mixing a pop sound with funk and soul. This album was released in 1985 -- and contained the band's biggest hit, Closest Thing To Heaven, a sumptuous piece of soul pop that would find itself on compilations of the decade for years to come.

While that top 20 hit raised their profile and got them large amounts of radio play, alongside the follow-up cover of Respect Yourself, The Kane Gang never quite lived up to this early promise. Now extended over three CDs, the album provides an intriguing incite into their early career. The original album itself contains some lovely surprises - such as the classy blues of Take This Train and soulful Loserville. But a shortage of material is highlighted by the weaker extra tracks included (seven on the first CD).

There is also a CD of demos and mixes, which as ever is more for the fans, while there's fun to be had in hearing the band play a November 1984 gig at Strathclyde University. This is a wonderfully put together remastering, and you can tell that founding members Dave Brewis, Martin Brammer and Paul Woods have been involved. There's a feeling of loving and caring attention to detail. There are also some lovely sleeve notes from the three talking about their time in the band.