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In the fall of 2005, two veterans of the Florida Punk Scene, guitarist Michael Smyth and drummer Glenn Stewart were  working together at a debt settlement company owned by Stewart. With passions leaning very heavily toward their  music, the two found themselves returning to the office late at night to work on songs that would eventually become  Do It Yourself, their debut album.   

“We had a full drum kit, a half-stack, a bass rig and half-a-dozen guitars lying around Glenn’s office”, says Smyth. “We  just kept the door closed and no one seemed to notice.”  Eventually the boys converted some unused warehouse  space next to their office into a rehearsal room. The space grew and grew until they had actually built a state-of-the- art recording studio.    

Buoyed by that accomplishment and with of a ton of original songs in their back pocket, they decided it was time to  form a band to flesh out all the creative ideas they had brewing.  So they brought in bassist Lindsey Pittard, trombonist  Aaron Zylman and saxophonist Jay Atheney to complete the line-up. Blending pop hooks with their distinctive fusion  of punk and ska, Victims of Circumstance quickly made a name for themselves among the sea of Central Florida  bands, both for their energetic performances and their commitment to the local scene.    

Victims of Circumstance tapped the talents of Tim “Johnny Vegas” Burton of the Mighty Mighty Bosstones to produce  their debut album Do It Yourself.” When the album was released in late 2007, the band locked down airplay on over  150 independent and college radio stations and a healthy amount of media attention.     

Hot on the heels of the in-store date, the boys supported the release with gigs with the Pietasters, Big D and the Kids 

Table, and, most importantly, with the Mighty Mighty Bosstones at the revival of their legendary Hometown  Throwdown in Boston.  Road warriors in spirit, they continued to play in the Southeast throughout 2008 opening for  bands such as Time Again, Whole Wheat Bread and The Voodoo Glow Skulls.     

Under the watchful eye of Big D and The Kids Table Bass player Steve Foote in the producer’s seat, the band entered  the studio again in early 2009 to record the follow-up.  The resulting album, Roll the Dice, will be released in August  of 2009.  Jam-packed with tight punk, ska and pop tracks with melodic hooks aplenty, this album pushes the band  even further, exploring different rock styles and rhythms. From the getgo of opening track "The Final Flight of D.B.  Cooper" that eases in with instantaneously-infectious punk rhythms to the celebratory skank of "This Riot Used To Be  A Party" to the cheekily-named (but not too far off) "Number One Hit Single", their second album packs energetic  melodic ska/punk/pop into fifteen tracks.    

Roll the Dice was produced by Steve Foote (Big D and the Kids Table) and will be released on August 25, 2009 on  Financial Records. 

9/02/09 || Anyone like Mexican Food!?!?! You can hear one of our tracks rocking on the popular Tex-mex resteraunt, Tijuana Flat's website... Go check it out and tell them how much you like it! Click Here to go to the site.

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8/20/09 || New Myspace is up, let us know what you think and if anything is broken!!!!

CD RELEASE SHOW!!!
This Saturday - August 22nd
Gasoline Alley - Clearwater Florida
All Ages - $10
Get a FREE copy of our CD when you pre-order your ticket through the link below! Just buy your ticket and you can pick up your FREE copy of our new album, Roll The Dice, when you get to the show!!!
CLICK HERE TO PRE-ORDER YOUR TICKET

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8/16/09 || The album is done!!! A big thanks to Steve Foote of Big D and The Kids Table for helping us make this record. It will be available on August 25th on iTunes, Amazon Mp3, Rhapsody, and every other digital outlet you can think of. News of the CD release show is coming soon so stay tuned!!!

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8/01/09 || Big news coming soon folks! We will be heading to New York for some pretty cool stuff, so stay tuned for full details!!! Financial Records will be putting out a 2nd compilation this year, so look out for a new VOC tune along with a new tune from our label mates Crisis in Hollywood.

REVIEWS FOR "Roll The Dice"
Enoch Magazine-
Produced by Steve Foote of Big D and the Kid’s Table, the album, Roll the Dice, brings that Punk Ska you’ve been waiting for since 1999. With the opening note to the final finish Victims of Circumstance has truly produced a masterpiece.
Click here to read full review

Bring On Mixed Reviews-
" I should also mention that ska isn’t exactly my favorite music to play on the regular, but Victims Of Circumstance, have helped the genre show up more on my “most listened” list."
Click here to read full review

Shakefire Magazine -
"Victims Of Circumstance. This is an energetic addition to a musical style that is still alive and kicking, if not as popular as it once was a few years ago."
Click here to read full review

Cosmos Gaming -
"Though Roll the Dice is a little more guitar oriented than its predecessor, this doesn’t mean that the horn section doesn’t get much time to shine. There are plenty of moments on this disc where Victims of Circumstance relies heavily on the horns section to keep their music going during these times they offer ska compositions that should sound familiar to anyone that is a fan of the genre."
Click here to read full review

October 31st - Saturday
Skalloween @ Pegasus Lounge in Tampa
Details TBA

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November 20th - Friday
Ska is Dead! @ Crowbar in Ybor
W/ Mustard Plug, Voodoo Glow Skulls, The Toasters and More
All Ages - $15 - 8 P.M.

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