You’ve been walking for a while. The surrounding landscape is nothing but unfamiliar. You kick up dirt and rubble as you pass shuttered building to shuttered building. You think about asking for help; maybe someone could point you in the right direction. That’s when you realize, to the sound of ascending synths, you are alone. You’re walking in a ghost town.

Part of the British ska revival of the 70s and 80s, also known as two-tone, The Specials dropped Ghost Town in 1981. 1981 was an intense time of political unrest in England, with riots spreading across English cities. With Ghost Town commenting on all things urban decay, the track naturally became a hit. 

At the same time, ska was having its own problems. Fans and musicians of the genre were splitting into two: with anti-racists on one side and racists on the other. Venues became dangerous, as violence broke out across dance floors. Violence that would later escape the clubs and reach the streets.

“This place (Town) /

Is coming like a ghost town /

Bands won’t play no more /

Too much fighting on the dance floor.”

Blending roots reggae, punk, and electronic, Ghost Town provides an eerie look back at England’s forgotten political landscape of the time.

“The people getting angry.”