in 1983
Found a diary I kept from January to November 1983. Sat up til midnight jotting down interesting entries.
Today I spent a while with my old mate Mr/Ms Google and tracked down a list of links which follow on from the diary entries. I will shove them on this dark entry. (Bauhaus - Dark Entries - a single now gathering dust in a box under my bed).
I then remembered that I had another diary for 1982 and have spent all morning looking for it. London Fire Brigade one, was given it after I spent ages listing every single dodgy chemical London Rubbber had on site - especially all the wierd ones in the latex testing lab. That was run by 'students' ... there was always a tell tale scent of hash lingering in the air when they went on their mysterious errands around the site.
Can't find 82. All I can remember is that it had entries like "had long conversation with Annie Anxiety" - but no mentions of Annie in 83 diary. Did some cultural shift occur? Only mention of Crass in 83 diary is Andy Palmer and Lu visiting 103 Grosvenor Avenue. And Poison Girls playing 'new' anarchy centre on Roseberry Avenue
Historical analysis.
1. Psychic TV
2.Richard's "Positive Punk" NME front page
3. Greenham/ CND
4. Stonehenge/ Mark buys a truck/ KYPP 6
5. Stop the City
6. Operation Able Archer 83
1. Psychic TV - Coil
Year started with a party at Mouse's house (Nettleton Road/ New Cross) where we listened very intensely to first Psychic TV album. Mouse later became a Psychic TV person (played on Godstar single) . Min was also at party, and by September had moved to Beck Road- next door to PTV Temple HQ. As per previous blog, Min became Zos Kia singer/ wrote words for song Rape. Zos Kia in turn evolved into Coil- although they wwere more John Gosling's group. John G. went onto become house music person.
Mouse was not long with PTV, but was friends with/ worked with(?) Coil "Only female allowed in their house" she later said. Even their cats were male...
The PTV/ TOPY lnks and connections are worth a blog of their own...
2. February 83 NME front page "Positive Punk"
This leads onwards and downwards to the history of Goth, but also backwards to Michael Moorcock , Hawkwind and late sixties underground as well as sideways to 'post-punk'.
3. CND marches and Greenham Common.
Diary mentions a couple of CND marches- one to Brockwell Park and also for 1st April "Val and Nicky gone to Greenham". Later there was a picnic on Hampstead Heath with Anna and Maria - who ran Southern death Cult's fanclub and were Black Sheep - who wrote apiece for Vague on "Magick and Greenham Common". Also a couple of mentions of reading Starhawk's Dreaming the Dark and meetngs (not myself) with Starhawk. A feminist fanzine "Alternative Sex" was produced. After I met Pinki (Jan 84) went to visit her at Greenham.
4. Stonehenge
In 1982 there were about 12 000 people at Stonehenge. In 1983, 35 000. 103 Grosvenor Avenue emptied. Diary entry for July 3rd (after all had retunred) "Mark bought truck at Brick Lane. " This truck he then converted into a travelling home, made himself a tipi and went off travelling the next summer. Kill Your Ppet Puppy 6 also had a Stonehenge theme - a story about following a trail of mysterious messages which led to the festival. That there was a link with the festival scene is shown by diary entry for 26th October "Big Steve needs £500 bail. Josef sorted it out". Big Steve was/ is key Stonehenge festival person.
5. Stop the City 29th September 83
Again, this needs its own blog to try and work out all the continuations - for example Maclibel Trial
6. Operation Able Archer 83
Nothing in diary on this -early November 83. Only found out about it years later in histtories of Cold War. But turns out that a full scale US rehearseal for nuclear war (originally involving both pres reagan and vice pres bush) panicked the Russkies so much they almost went literally ballistic. Luckily Soviet fears were picked up by spies etc and event sacled down at last minute, but puts all of this punk history in context. We were living with a future only 4 minutes away from total annihilation.
From diary took Ecstasy with Marina (from USA) on November 5th - i.e. at same time as Operation Able Archer- and she had strange visions of silver dragon flying to earth from planet Pluto. Although not in diary, I had problems on occasional trips with acid. End of the World! Not very fun and not very psychedelic sixties. More like in yer face - get out and do something about it... but what? Perhaps why I met Pinki as Greenham Woman rather than in her previous incarnation as the most out to lunch punk ever.
Websites/ links
http://www.scathe.demon.co.uk/posipunk.htm Goth/ posi punk
http://members.aol.com/blissout/postpunk.htm Simon Reynolds- post punk but see Mick mercer below
http://www.geocities.com/punkettes80s/brigandage.html posi punk- Brigandage
http://www.geocities.com/nihilismontheprowl/index.html punk stuff inclyuding above
http://www.trustthedj.com/ChrisLiberator/bio.php?djid=804 Hagar the Womb to acid house via anarchy centres
http://www.uncarved.org/music/apunk/ John Eden's excellent selection of useful a-punk texts
http://www.scathe.demon.co.uk/mmart83.htm Mick Mercer 83- links to Simon reynolds, opposite concusion.
http://www.blythpower.co.uk/genesis/chap09.htm Josef's memories of punk/ squatting etc
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2822/is_3_27/ai_n6330582 Crass Commodities - academic piece, but necessary read if you want to make sense of it all
http://festival-zone.0catch.com/henge-history-80-82.html not sure if this is still there, but tons on Stonehenge. If not Goole n Stonehenge free festival and find Dice george and Tash's sites
http://www.philhine.org.uk/writings/ess_balanceobit.html Obit of John Balance/ Coil
http://www.rarevinyl.net/coil.htm Zos Kia
http://www.brainwashed.com/common/htdocs/discog/nrc05.html see below on Rape
John Deek says:WARNING : Do not listen to Rape on headphones with the volume turned up loud.....I was listening to this CD on headphones.. track 3 came along and I said "ooh a live version of 'here to here'...I wonder why they call it 'rape'?"...then Min came in with some spoken word and I said "ah that explains...still a pretty harsh name for such a mellow song...."just then the phone rang, and a split second after I took the headphones off a pierching shriek ripped from the headphones...they were nearly a foot away from my ears and I was still deafened...had I been wearing them my ears would probably be bleeding...deafened in the pursuit of ultimate sound.....how ironic..."
http://www.mcspotlight.org/media/press/ind_29sep96.html Stop the City/ London Greenpeace/ maclibel
http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/Senate/7672/beast4.html A -Punk
http://www.cia.gov/csi/monograph/coldwar/source.htm#HEADING1-13 - go down list to find CIA on Able Archer.
More? Yeah, but another time, OK?
Alistair
Today I spent a while with my old mate Mr/Ms Google and tracked down a list of links which follow on from the diary entries. I will shove them on this dark entry. (Bauhaus - Dark Entries - a single now gathering dust in a box under my bed).
I then remembered that I had another diary for 1982 and have spent all morning looking for it. London Fire Brigade one, was given it after I spent ages listing every single dodgy chemical London Rubbber had on site - especially all the wierd ones in the latex testing lab. That was run by 'students' ... there was always a tell tale scent of hash lingering in the air when they went on their mysterious errands around the site.
Can't find 82. All I can remember is that it had entries like "had long conversation with Annie Anxiety" - but no mentions of Annie in 83 diary. Did some cultural shift occur? Only mention of Crass in 83 diary is Andy Palmer and Lu visiting 103 Grosvenor Avenue. And Poison Girls playing 'new' anarchy centre on Roseberry Avenue
Historical analysis.
1. Psychic TV
2.Richard's "Positive Punk" NME front page
3. Greenham/ CND
4. Stonehenge/ Mark buys a truck/ KYPP 6
5. Stop the City
6. Operation Able Archer 83
1. Psychic TV - Coil
Year started with a party at Mouse's house (Nettleton Road/ New Cross) where we listened very intensely to first Psychic TV album. Mouse later became a Psychic TV person (played on Godstar single) . Min was also at party, and by September had moved to Beck Road- next door to PTV Temple HQ. As per previous blog, Min became Zos Kia singer/ wrote words for song Rape. Zos Kia in turn evolved into Coil- although they wwere more John Gosling's group. John G. went onto become house music person.
Mouse was not long with PTV, but was friends with/ worked with(?) Coil "Only female allowed in their house" she later said. Even their cats were male...
The PTV/ TOPY lnks and connections are worth a blog of their own...
2. February 83 NME front page "Positive Punk"
This leads onwards and downwards to the history of Goth, but also backwards to Michael Moorcock , Hawkwind and late sixties underground as well as sideways to 'post-punk'.
3. CND marches and Greenham Common.
Diary mentions a couple of CND marches- one to Brockwell Park and also for 1st April "Val and Nicky gone to Greenham". Later there was a picnic on Hampstead Heath with Anna and Maria - who ran Southern death Cult's fanclub and were Black Sheep - who wrote apiece for Vague on "Magick and Greenham Common". Also a couple of mentions of reading Starhawk's Dreaming the Dark and meetngs (not myself) with Starhawk. A feminist fanzine "Alternative Sex" was produced. After I met Pinki (Jan 84) went to visit her at Greenham.
4. Stonehenge
In 1982 there were about 12 000 people at Stonehenge. In 1983, 35 000. 103 Grosvenor Avenue emptied. Diary entry for July 3rd (after all had retunred) "Mark bought truck at Brick Lane. " This truck he then converted into a travelling home, made himself a tipi and went off travelling the next summer. Kill Your Ppet Puppy 6 also had a Stonehenge theme - a story about following a trail of mysterious messages which led to the festival. That there was a link with the festival scene is shown by diary entry for 26th October "Big Steve needs £500 bail. Josef sorted it out". Big Steve was/ is key Stonehenge festival person.
5. Stop the City 29th September 83
Again, this needs its own blog to try and work out all the continuations - for example Maclibel Trial
6. Operation Able Archer 83
Nothing in diary on this -early November 83. Only found out about it years later in histtories of Cold War. But turns out that a full scale US rehearseal for nuclear war (originally involving both pres reagan and vice pres bush) panicked the Russkies so much they almost went literally ballistic. Luckily Soviet fears were picked up by spies etc and event sacled down at last minute, but puts all of this punk history in context. We were living with a future only 4 minutes away from total annihilation.
From diary took Ecstasy with Marina (from USA) on November 5th - i.e. at same time as Operation Able Archer- and she had strange visions of silver dragon flying to earth from planet Pluto. Although not in diary, I had problems on occasional trips with acid. End of the World! Not very fun and not very psychedelic sixties. More like in yer face - get out and do something about it... but what? Perhaps why I met Pinki as Greenham Woman rather than in her previous incarnation as the most out to lunch punk ever.
Websites/ links
http://www.scathe.demon.co.uk/posipunk.htm Goth/ posi punk
http://members.aol.com/blissout/postpunk.htm Simon Reynolds- post punk but see Mick mercer below
http://www.geocities.com/punkettes80s/brigandage.html posi punk- Brigandage
http://www.geocities.com/nihilismontheprowl/index.html punk stuff inclyuding above
http://www.trustthedj.com/ChrisLiberator/bio.php?djid=804 Hagar the Womb to acid house via anarchy centres
http://www.uncarved.org/music/apunk/ John Eden's excellent selection of useful a-punk texts
http://www.scathe.demon.co.uk/mmart83.htm Mick Mercer 83- links to Simon reynolds, opposite concusion.
http://www.blythpower.co.uk/genesis/chap09.htm Josef's memories of punk/ squatting etc
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2822/is_3_27/ai_n6330582 Crass Commodities - academic piece, but necessary read if you want to make sense of it all
http://festival-zone.0catch.com/henge-history-80-82.html not sure if this is still there, but tons on Stonehenge. If not Goole n Stonehenge free festival and find Dice george and Tash's sites
http://www.philhine.org.uk/writings/ess_balanceobit.html Obit of John Balance/ Coil
http://www.rarevinyl.net/coil.htm Zos Kia
http://www.brainwashed.com/common/htdocs/discog/nrc05.html see below on Rape
John Deek says:WARNING : Do not listen to Rape on headphones with the volume turned up loud.....I was listening to this CD on headphones.. track 3 came along and I said "ooh a live version of 'here to here'...I wonder why they call it 'rape'?"...then Min came in with some spoken word and I said "ah that explains...still a pretty harsh name for such a mellow song...."just then the phone rang, and a split second after I took the headphones off a pierching shriek ripped from the headphones...they were nearly a foot away from my ears and I was still deafened...had I been wearing them my ears would probably be bleeding...deafened in the pursuit of ultimate sound.....how ironic..."
http://www.mcspotlight.org/media/press/ind_29sep96.html Stop the City/ London Greenpeace/ maclibel
http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/Senate/7672/beast4.html A -Punk
http://www.cia.gov/csi/monograph/coldwar/source.htm#HEADING1-13 - go down list to find CIA on Able Archer.
More? Yeah, but another time, OK?
Alistair
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