Capdown

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title: "Capdown" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["musical-groups-established-in-1997", "musical-groups-disestablished-in-2007", "underground-punk-scene-in-the-united-kingdom", "third-wave-ska-groups", "entertainers-from-milton-keynes", "english-ska-musical-groups", "fierce-panda-records-artists", "british-political-music-groups", "post–third-wave-ska-groups", "1997-establishments-in-england"] description: "English punk rock band" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capdown" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary English punk rock band ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox musical artist"]

Field	Value
name	Capdown
image	File:Capdown Live Norwich.jpg
caption	Capdown performing at the University of East Anglia in 2005, with Jake Sims-Fielding in the foreground
alias	Soap (Late 1990s)
origin	Milton Keynes, England
genre	Ska punk, hardcore punk
years_active	{{flatlist
label	Household Name Records
Gravity DIP Records
Fierce Panda Records
website
current_members	Jake Sims-Fielding
Robin "Boob" Goold
Keith Minter
Tim Macdonald
Andrew "Eddie" Hunt
::

| name = Capdown | image = File:Capdown Live Norwich.jpg | caption = Capdown performing at the University of East Anglia in 2005, with Jake Sims-Fielding in the foreground | image_size = | alias = Soap (Late 1990s) | origin = Milton Keynes, England | genre = Ska punk, hardcore punk | years_active = {{flatlist|

• 1997–2007
• 2008
• 2010–2021 | label = Household Name Records Gravity DIP Records Fierce Panda Records | associated_acts = | website = | current_members = Jake Sims-Fielding Robin "Boob" Goold Keith Minter Tim Macdonald Andrew "Eddie" Hunt | past_members =

Capdown is an English punk rock band from Milton Keynes. Originally known as Soap, their songs have political themes as alluded to by their name, which is a portmanteau of Capitalist Downfall. Mixing ska, punk, hardcore, dub, drum and bass, and reggae, Capdown built a reputation around their independent releases and numerous tours.

Career

The band members had been playing together since the age of 14. The band, originally known as Soap, had sent the demo of the Time For Change EP to the indie Household Name Records in 1998 and had played a gig with Link 80 at the record company's request, which led to them being signed onto the label. The EP was released in 1999 under the new name of the band, Capdown (short for Capitalist Downfall).

In May 2000, Household Name Records released Capdown's debut album Civil Disobedients. The album featured hardcore, but also mixed in ska and dub. According to Drowned in Sound the album kick started an underground punk scene. The album went on to be listed at 76 in the NME's top one hundred list for the decade. In the same year Capdown played nearly 250 gigs.

In early 2001, Capdown toured with a number of established American bands, including Less Than Jake and played the Deconstruction touring festival with Pennywise and Lagwagon.

In September 2001, Capdown released their second album, Pound for the Sound, receiving positive reviews from Kerrang!. The following year saw tours with Bad Religion and Hundred Reasons. Capdown was featured in the 2002 BBC documentary Brassic Beats about the British ska punk scene.

In 2003 the band signed to Fierce Panda Records, releasing two EPs: Act Your Rage and New Revolutionaries. The former reached the 80th spot on the UK Singles Chart on 10 May 2003. As of November 2004, Civil Disobedients and Pound for the Sound have sold more than 30 thousand copies together. The band received critical acclaim for their live performances. In 2006, Capdown played at the first Slam Dunk Festival.

The final line-up consisted of Jake Sims-Fielding (vocals and saxophone), Robin "Boob" Goold (bass guitar), Keith Minter (guitar and vocals), Tim Macdonald (drums) and a new addition, Andrew "Eddie" Hunt (keyboards/samples).

They released their final album on 5 February 2007, entitled Wind Up Toys on Fierce Panda Records.

The band split up after their final UK tour, which was due to be 9 November 2007, in their home town of Milton Keynes. However their 'final show' took place on 7 June 2008, at the Pitz club in Milton Keynes, following a 'warm up' at the Peel in Kingston upon Thames on 5 June 2008.

It was announced in 2010 that Capdown were to reform exclusively for the Slam Dunk Festival, held in London and Leeds on 29 and 30 May that year. However, the band also played at the Rebellion Festival in Blackpool on 6 August 2011. In addition, they appeared at the Hevy Music Festival in Kent, between 5 and 8 August 2011 and at the Reading and Leeds Festival on 27–28 August 2011. In December 2014 the band played together with Me First and the Gimme Gimmes and The Skints on the Jägermeister Music Tour.

In May 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, and September 2021, the band played at the Slam Dunk Festival in Leeds and Hatfield, United Kingdom.

Other projects

Following the original demise of Capdown, both Goold and Macdonald worked on a new band, The Maccalites, alongside Simon Wells from Snuff/Southport. Goold, Minter and Macdonald are also members of rock band This Contrast Kills.

Since 2012 Robin Goold and Tim Macdonald have been working on The GetGone with Ben Hyman, David Lloyd (1000 Hz) and Rob Blay. The band have released the 5 track Stories and Ruses EP in 2013, and their debut album One Thousand Ways To Live in April 2016. Both recorded and produced by Capdown's Keith Minter.

As of 2013 Tim Macdonald has been playing drums in the UK Hardcore band Menshevik along with Steve Pitcher of Vanilla Pod, Dan Hawcroft previously of Whizzwood and Robert Dempsey of Mustard City Rockers.

Discography

Albums

::data[format=table]

Year	Album title	Label
2000	Civil Disobedients	Household Name
2001	Pound for the Sound	Household Name
2007	Wind Up Toys	Fierce Panda
::

Singles

::data[format=table]

Year	Title	Label
2003	Act Your Rage	Fierce Panda
2003	New Revolutionaries	Gravity DIP
2006	Keeping Up Appearances	Fierce Panda
2007	Surviving the Death of a Genre	Fierce Panda
2007	No Matter What	Fierce Panda
::

Music videos

• Act Your Rage (2003)
• New Revolutionaries (2003)

Other releases

::data[format=table]

Year	Title	Label	Notes
1999	Time for Change EP	Household Name
2000	Split EP	Household Name	Split with Link 80
2001	Christmas Fisting EP	Household Name	Split with Hard Skin and Southport
2003	Live in Brighton	Punker Bunker	Live DVD; split with Rude Bones
2005	Live in M.K.	Gravity DIP	Live album
2007	Live EP	Fierce Panda	Live EP; included with some editions of Wind Up Toys and subsequently given away as a free download
::

Critical reception

In 2021, Louder included the band in a 'best of' list, saying "Capdown kick-started something of a movement here in the UK ...", and that if things had gone differently it could have been massive.

Notes

References

References

1. "Capdown".
2. (Autumn 2007). "Household Name Records".
3. "Capdown : Time for Change CDep".
4. "OneMetal Grill: Capdown".
5. (2 November 2007). "Ska Wars: the life and death of a UK underground".
6. "The Top 100 Greatest Albums Of The Decade".
7. "Capdown - Civil Disobedients CD".
8. (2 October 2003). "Capdown review".
9. (9 April 2001). "Anarchy in the UK". Metal Hammer.
10. "Review:Pound for the Sound". [[Kerrang!]].
11. (16 January 2002). "Capdown Support Bad Religion". Metal Hammer.
12. (20 January 2002). "Hundred Reasons/ Capdown Tour / Music News".
13. (23 September 2002). "BBC - Radio 1 Documentaries - Brassic Beats".
14. "Act Your Rage".
15. (8 May 2003). "Act Your Rage".
16. (19 November 2004). "Get Your Skank On….Capdown Are Back!".
17. (8 March 2007). "Somerset - Entertainment and Leisure - Review: Capdown". BBC.
18. (7 May 2018). "Looking Back At 12 Years Of Slam Dunk Festival... - HTF Magazine".
19. (12 December 2006). "Capdown announce February tour and new album".
20. (14 December 2006). "Capdown return in 2007".
21. (20 September 2007). "Capdown call it quits".
22. "Capdown - Last Ever Show in Milton Keynes 09/11/07".
23. "Capdown - Milton Keynes, UK - Punk / Hardcore / Ska".
24. (7 June 2008). "Gig of the week". [[The Independent]].
25. "Capdown - At the peel - 5th June 08".
26. (May 2010). "Feature: Slam Dunk Festival 2010 Preview - Vans "Off The Wall" Stage".
27. (18 February 2010). "2010 Slam Dunk Festival Line Up".
28. "Capdown - Slam Dunk Festival".
29. (27 November 2010). "Rebellion Festival update".
30. "Bands".
31. (11 April 2011). "Capdown July/August tour".
32. "Capdown / Anti Vigilante / Skets".
33. (13 September 2011). "The Mighty Mighty Bosstones – Reading Festival".
34. (26 November 2014). "Capdown reform for UK shows".
35. (24 April 2012). "Gallows and Capdown added to Slam Dunk Festival line up".
36. (6 April 2014). "Slam Dunk Festival 2014 line-up latest".
37. (25 January 2016). "Slam Dunk 2016".
38. (29 January 2018). "Slam Dunk announces third wave of acts ahead of popular May festival".
39. (18 June 2021). "Slam Dunk announce Frank Turner, Alkaline Trio, Funeral For A Friend…".
40. "Pick It Up Yo: Top 6 Ska Punk Bands".
41. (21 February 2010). "Punktastic Interviews: Capdown".
42. (10 March 2010). "This Contrast Kills – The Corrupted Luxury EP".
43. (3 February 2014). "First play of the new EP from The GetGone".
44. (20 June 2015). "Gnarwolves & the Get Gone Shake Up a Monday Night at the Craufurd".
45. "Homepage".
46. (13 December 2013). "Menshevik - UK Hardcore - Punk".
47. "Homepage".
48. "Capdown 'New Revolutionaries'".
49. (13 October 2006). "You Kerrang My Lord?".
50. "Capdown "Surviving The Death Of A Genre"".
51. (13 August 2007). "Capdown And Out".
52. "Capdown - Act Your Rage".
53. "Link 80 / Capdown - Split".
54. "Hard Skin / Capdown / Southport - Christmas Fisting EP".
55. "Capdown / Rude Bones - Live in Brighton 2003".
56. "Capdown 'Live in MK'".
57. "Capdown - Wind Up Toys".
58. (2021-06-24). "The 10 best songs by 10 ska punk bands you'd forgotten ever existed".

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