"It's the same old story. Two brothers start playing Sepultura covers together as soon as they know how, and before you know it one of them has stabbed the trumpet geek in his class and they've formed a ska band. It may seem a bit of a cliche now but back in 1998 Shootin' Goon were doing something no-one else in Cardiff seemed to be doing, and all their mates loved it. For two years the Goon kept it real, playing shows mainly in Cardiff, but venturing out to Bristol, Bath and London for shows with the likes of MU330, Jeffries' Fan Club, Kenisia and whoever would be safe enough to put them on. '99 saw the departure of singer John, just weeks after the completion of Splottside Rocksteady, and in 2000 the vocals were re-recorded by new singer James and the album was released through Moon Ska Europe, at the time a brand new label.

Being in a band when you're between 16 and 26 is never easy, especially when there's eight of you, and Shootin' Goon soon found it hard to commit to as much as they would have liked to. Big career-starting tours weren't followed up, and follow up releases weren't written while they worked their McJobs to pay the McRent. None the less, the Goon stuck at it and managed to keep themselves at least near the top of the British ska band pile, eventually penning new brass-driven classics while other bands were trading in their saxophones for trucker hats and backpacks.

Having eluded anything fashionable for so long, it seems the done thing these days to break up. Shootin' Goon have moved on: bought houses, started businesses, and gone to college, but none of them will easily forget the experiences they've had, and the truly amazing people they've met on the way. Their last show will be nearly six years from their first. Perhaps the end of some sort of era, if anyone actually noticed."