Ear Candy is not a CD-R this time but a professionally duplicated CD, profits from which go to the Dorset ME Association. Mostly a guitar-pop comp, with the occasional song from another style, such as THE (LESSER) RAMBLIN' PITCHFORKS folk songs which can also be heard on the above CD; ska crossed with pop from AKIMBO; and the sample-laden, dancey track from THE LUCKY BISHOPS. The stand-out tracks for me are those by CHEESE (the somewhat jokey name is misleading as they are a very impressive and professional sounding band), GARFIELDS BIRTHDAY (60s influenced pop), THE CLANGERS (their track is a SHERYL CROW cover, I can't stand SHERYL CROW but this version is good), SATSUMA (lo-fi pop-punk) and THE TRACEY SITUATION (fairly 80s-ish indiepop).

Reviewed in Aquamarine by Kim Harten, UK

God knows how I'm going to review this compilation album, as it's an almost impossible thing to do because the music on here is so varied and as usual I'm not in the mood (same about you I suppose) to describe and pigeonhole 16 bands. The goal is quite simple. Simon Felton, who's not only a member from indiepop band GARFIELDS BIRTHDAY, is also a very big music maniac. And you know what music maniacs do... or they run a zine, run a distro, or they start a label and it's the latest option our friend Simon choose for.

And Ear Candy is the latest indie compilation released on Pink Hedgehog Records, and let's say it's a collection of 16 bands from the underground (some are still seeking for stardom and recognition, while others have already disbanded, but hey, it's not because a band no longer exists that it's not worthy to release. You really should hear how many great tracks there are to be found on demo tapes nobody knows the existence of!). As said, it's diverse. It goes from sugarsweet indiepop, to country-influenced stuff, to pure ska.

Best thing you can do is check out the band's website (that's GARFIELDS BIRTHDAY) as they give you a very detailed information pack of all the bands who are on it (and if you're in a band, why not send a demo? You'll never know!). Is it good? Well, some stuff is excellent and some is not, but every opportunity to give bands a platform to expose themselves is good and it's you who has to choose. You can make your choice out of 16 bands!

Reviewed in The Original Sin by Didier Becu, BELGIUM

This is the second compilation of bands on the Pink Hedgehog label and features sixteen tracks of good time, smiley indie pop - with classics from heroes GARFIELDS BIRTHDAY (harmony laden BYRDS pop), BLEND, SATSUMA (heavier, lo-fi pop punk with female vocals), and EYE (dark, string filled RADIOHEAD). All proceeds go to the ME Association, so dig deep.

Reviewed in The Exclusive by Matt Tee, UK

As compilation albums go, most of them always have songs that stand out from the rest, well Ear Candy falls into this category, it contains some good and some not so good. Preferring to concentrate on the good, THE CLANGERS with 'My Favorite Mistake' deliver a sweet acoustic tune that obviously deserved it's chart success, I also like GARFIELDS BIRTHDAY, a band I have heard before on other compilations, and SATSUMA 'Almost Routine' has an early punk DIY sound that brings back memories. 'Plastic' performed by the band EYE could well be a film score with it's dreamy laid back feel, strings and great vocals. CHEESE, THE LUCKY BISHOPS and AKIMBO, who have a ska type feel, all contribute some worthy music. With a tongue in cheek name THE RAMBLIN' PITCHFORKS, who I should imagine wear Angora jumpers and drink real ale, sound like THE SPINNERS on acid, with their folk rock style song 'The Travelling Man'. Ear Candy is well worth a fiver, so go and treat yourself.

Reviewed in Blag by AB, UK

Have you heard of Pink Hedgehog Records? Neither did I, until the label's Best Of Pink Hedgehog Records Volume Two came my way and it is loaded with some terrific stuff. I'm talking about great pure pop like 'Where Are They Now?' by CHEESE, the groovy 'ESP' by THE TRACEY SITUATION, and traditional footstompers like 'The Travelling Man' by THE RAMBLIN' PITCHFORKS. Then there's THE LUCKY BISHOPS with a retro-pizzicato-dance-soundbite-thingy workout that's loads of fun!

Reviewed in Shake It Up by Claudio Sossi, CANADA

I'll admit up front that I'm biased. All proceeds of this comp go to the M.E. Association, a charity that regular readers will know is very close to my heart. Simon Felton, head man at Pink Hedgehog, also suffers from the illness and it's a tribute to his persistence and single-mindedness that not only is it seeing a release at all but also that it's his second such collection.

On to the music and, as the compilation aphorism goes: one man's Meat Puppets is another man's Poison. My meat, so to speak, includes THE RAMBLIN' PITCHFORKS electric folk (but not folk rock), SATSUMA's subterranean pogo stick indie-pop (recorded badly, mixed worse and with jumble sale snare-only drums but still the essential edge) and a completely out of character beatbox and sampler assault not seen since the days of BOMB THE BASS's "Beat Dis" by psychedelic rockers THE LUCKY BISHOPS.

Reviewed in Robots & Electronic Brains by Jimmy Possession, UK

Sixteen track compilation from Pink Hedgehog Records. This label came via a band I'd reviewed on the 25 Records compilation a couple of issues back, and they were GARFIELDS BIRTHDAY. Who, as luck would have it, are on here with 'Everything', the second track. The opener, though, is by CHEESE, and is called 'Where Are They Now?'. This is a sparkling song, rich with guitars and a cracking hook line with some very favourable lead fills. A cracking impressive opener. The aforesaid GARFIELDS BIRTHDAY are next up, and it's a softer song than CHEESE with some fine harmony work in the vocal department, with the guitars down in the mix. Mind you, I wouldn't have expected 'owt else from this band.

Like the compilations from 25 Records, the production qualities and quality of the songwriting are impeccable. And, like the 25 Records compilations, it's incredibly difficult to pick any songs out as they're all really impressive. But seeing as though you're twisting my arm, here goes:

THE RAMBLIN' PITCHFORKS ('cos it's different), THE CLANGERS, EPONYMOUS, SATSUMA (FLYING LIZARDS crossed with THE UNDERTONES and THE BUZZCOCKS), EYE, and the dazzling LUCKY BISHOPS. Ear Candy shows that there's far more out there than we'd think, and this album is a real eye (ear?) opener. Well done that label. LUCKY BISHOPS... what a hell of a song!

Reviewed in Modern Dance Magazine by Dave W Hughes, UK

Usually I hate compilation albums. One or two of the songs might be good, and the rest are very disposable. I view a comp album as a road map. You can get led to some very good bands once you get past the dead ends. Well, Ear Candy (the name is just a coincidence) is a very good road map indeed! The album covers some of the best bands from the Dorset, England scene. It is a varied collection of pop, indie, rap, folk, ska and acoustic. True, I'm not fond of about half the songs, especially the folky stuff, the pseudo-pop-rap and some of the REM-sounding bands. But the remaining 8 are superb and have led me to the releases of some of the bands.

The outstanding power pop bands on this comp are: CHEESE, GARFIELDS BIRTHDAY (interview and album review coming soon), HAPPYHEAD, THE BIG STANDEASY (great BYRDS-like sound) and VIVID (sounding very much like the ORIGINAL SINS). SATSUMA is old style, BIS sounding punk (their song has hilarious lyrics). THE CLANGERS cover of the SHERYL CROW song, 'My Favorite Mistake' is better than the original (and I hate SHERYL CROW!), especially the singer's sensual voice. And EYE is reminiscent of old MOODY BLUES (not necessarily a bad thing). This is one compilation album which is worth the trip for the roadmap alone.

Reviewed in Ear Candy by Ronnie Dannelley, USA

A UK based label with the great pop band HAPPYHEAD on its roster and many others, including such delights as the C-60 sound-meets-BIG STAR band CHEESE, the ZOMBIE-ish GARFIELDS BIRTHDAY, the very highly recommended all round HAPPYHEAD (see the listing for their CD under "H"), the CAMPER VAN BEETHOVEN like RAMBLIN' PITCHFORKS, the Britty-pop of VIVID (now signed to Arista in the UK), the PATTI SMITH/VELVET UNDERGROUND musings of COLON, the early REM/LET'S ACTIVE sounds of THE BIG STANDEASY and more and more. 16 songs/bands total. A great, eclectically workable comp! Very highly recommended for pop trollers all over.

Reviewed for Not Lame Recordings by Bruce Brodeen, USA

Hi! It's really a bit difficult to explain how I feel about your bunch of bands. I grew up with British pop, it was always adding good feeling/power/strength to whatever I did 'til it all slowly vanished. I had to escape the UK. Since I'm underground I realised that what I call the *true British pop* is alive, somewhere hidden, found some rare examples but now I found the region (or the label) where it all happens now.

Or in other words: there is just one band you sent that doesn't catch me 100%, all other music is absolutely killing!!! All bands from the meaty psychedelic pop of VIVID to the DEVO-ish/X-RAY SPEX-ish with a touch of JONATHAN RICHMAN (the black album produced by JOHN CALE) sound of SATSUMA to the giant pop monster of EYE to the great 'n crazy mixture of THE LUCKY BISHOPS. Not to forget the folk masters THE RAMBLIM' PITCHFORKS, and sure there's also the ska-ish AKIMBO... oups sorry... like I said I could mention every band!! Your own band (GARFIELDS BIRTHDAY) is a rare example of a band that built a bridge between sixty-ish pop and new indie flair... strange: I hear some MANFRED MANN here. I'll defenitely present your label at the show. OK, cheerz for today. Greetings to all bands!!
Yours Lord Litter, Thanks for being out there.

Email sent from DJ Lord Litter, Berlin, GERMANY

Often, 'Various Artist' collections are a toss up. You might buy the CD for 1 good track, and the rest is a bog of sand and sadness. No so, Vol. 2. Without knowing these bands, I am now pleasantly pleased and would be puppy happy to now hear a whole CD from HAPPYHEAD after playing 'Breathe For Me' several times. Bright, fun, positive. 'Where Are They Now' by CHEESE could be the next theme for Friends, or some hip sitcom. Like ELVIS COSTELLO and the ATTRACTIONS getting back to kick ass, CHEESE drips a memorable tune right into the ear wax. The sampler is only 5 pounds. Yes, just 5 from the UK, and going over 60 minutes, it's the best way to spend your money if you want to test a lot of talent at once. Let's hope the good people of Hedgehog read this and send me all these CD's.

Reviewed in @NZone Magazine by Ben Ohmart, USA

Dear Simon, sorry the bad English, I got today your Ear Candy compilation, and I love it. Many thanks for your support. I like many styles of music, but I have power pop in my heart. Your band is really amazing. I know GB since Greg from RPM sent me Pop Goes The World CD last year. This second song is better, and I'd love to hear more from GARFIELDS BIRTHDAY. Never heard of it before anything about HAPPYHEAD, but 'Breathe for me' is a very good and catchy song, and I also love 'Where are they now?' by CHEESE. I can't talk about the other songs, because I haven't even heard most of the stuff. This 3 songs are playing over and over, I try but  still can't get this triology out of rotation. For me, this disc is one of the nicest surprises of 2000. Once again thanks for supporting us! All the best.

Dear Simon, sorry the bad English, in the opinion of this humble listener Ear Candy is a good compilation. The greater number of the bands are very interesting. Of course, I'm sure you already know that we are living bad times for pop music, unless you played in a band called OASIS. I've been listening your record this past weekend, I've found amazing songs played by bands like BLEND, EPONYMOUS, THE BIG STANDEASY, VIVID, SATSUMA, THE TRACEY SITUATION, EYE, AKIMBO and COLON. All I have to say is: Congratulations you've made a great job and, definately, this is fine compilation. Thanks Simon, once again, for such a great support.

Emails sent from DJ Carlos Quintino, BaNg BaNg, PORTUGAL

Hey there, I listened to the whole song. My favorite two (and the ones I'll definitely play) are track #1 (CHEESE) and whatever track EYE was.  They're both catchy enough songs that people will dig them.  I'll give the rest of it another listen, but the two songs I mentioned above will definitely get played. thanks for sending it.

Email sent from DJ Dave (British Accents), WERS, Boston, USA

Simon, thanks for the comp... one of the better ones I've heard in a while, lotsa variety.

Email sent from Greg Colburn (RPM USA), AMERICAN LABEL

A source of considerable delight round our way is the news that the estimable Simon Felton, local muso and generous-hearted entreprenurial champion of the rock and pop needy, has just released another compilation CD of Dorset-based bands on his Pink Hedgehog label. Entitled Ear Candy, it's available for a mere, trifling £5 (all proceeds go to the Dorset Group ME Association), and it's a class artefact if you ask me, despite the fact that I'm actually on it. Featured bands include SATSUMA, HAPPYHEAD, GARFIELDS BIRTHDAY, EYE, THE LUCKY BISHOPS, VIVID (ELECTRASY in a previous incarnation), THE BIG STANDEASY, CHEESE and COLON.

It's nigh impossible to single out any one track for praise in a uniformly excellent selection, but I can now vouch for the fact that 'New Deal' by THE LUCKY BISHOPS is a bit of a life-altering experience... The album is available from the following outlets: Weymouth - FM Music, Paz, The Tourist Information Office, Rock & Pop Music, Lorelei Music; Portland - Spirit Of The Island; Dorchester - Big Brians, Arcadia, The Tourist Information Office. Alternatively, it's available direct from Simon (Address supplied). Check out Simon's homepage while you're at it.

Reviewed in The Dorset Evening Echo by Marco Rossi, UK

One of our Portland members has again turned up trumps by recording and releasing another CD in aid of group funds. Simon Felton has enlisted the help of some prominent local bands and musicians to compile a disc called Ear Candy. Released in time to solve all your Christmas present problems on what to buy for the young at heart, Ear Candy retails in the shops for £5.00 - a bargain price.

It is obtainable from the following outlets - Tourist Information Office, Arcadia and Big Brian in Dorchester, Falcon Records, Tourist Information Office, Rock and Pop Music, Lorelei Music and Paz in Weymouth and Spirit of the Island, Fortuneswell, Portland, or by sending a cheque for £5.00 (inc p&p) made payable to Simon A. Felton at (Address supplied). Copies of Simon's previous CD The Pink Hedgehog Incident are still available from him also for £5.00 (inc p&p). (Now Only £2.00)

Taken from The Dorset ME Group Newsletter, UK