[kj] Gigs, less violent...?

Juliet Pleming pricepleming at tiscali.co.uk
Thu Mar 3 19:21:06 EST 2005


I was never at any really violent gigs, and I did go to a lot of gigs.
My first pogo was at the Rezillos at High Wycombe Town Hall, when I came
back to England for the summer of 78. That was when I was living in
Detroit. It was excruciating to be away form this country from summer 77
to summer 79. I did a paper round and saved up to come back for the
summer holidays78. I stayed at my gran's and taped John Peel every
night.Going to that gig opened up a whole new world to me. I had been
watching it avidly from a distance, but hadn't had a chance to be really
there. I was aching for it. It was like a baptism that night. Of course
the Rezillos were just jolly good fun - no violence.

The closest I got to a violent gig was Crass playing at Stonehenge -
must've been summer 80. We were daytrippers to it. While we were there
the heckling started. There was a punk band playing whose name escapes
me just now - young boys - I think they sang a song about a tube train -
moorgate disaster. Lyric snippet 'vicarious living kills your boredom'
and Steve Ignorant and the others were standing around.We came home at
the end of the day, but heard that Hell's Angels had ridden their motor
bikes over punks tents in the night etc. There was some bottle throwing
while we were there.

My young goth son tells me gory stories of people dying at gigs and
(animal)entrails being thrown into the crowd at gigs. Of course this may
all be hear say as he has not yet been to a gig. He is going to Cradle
of Filth in April. That will be his first. Is there more blood lust
these days? I think so.I'll tell you something else later.


Juliet


-Original Message-----
From: gathering-bounces at misera.net [mailto:gathering-bounces at misera.net]
On Behalf Of iPat
Sent: 03 March 2005 08:25
To: A list about all things Killing Joke (the band!)
Subject: Re: [kj] Gigs, less violent...?


The Meteors had in their road crew some of the highest profile football
fighters of that time. The lead singer was sent away for murder wasnt
he? I recall them wandering around one gig with a baseball bat looking
for someone who had thrown a plastic glass full of beer at them on
stage.

btw the crass recording [out on cd] in perth of the skinhead/bnp attack
throughout the gig was off my cassette in the mixer. Not only was it
self survival but we were trying to protect the band and the younger
punks the whole night. I was hidden in the back of the Poisen Girls
ambulance and dropped off in Edinburgh so i wasnt hunted down that
night!

the worst security was always in ipswich and Colchester as they used the
squaddies from the local garrison. I recall the end of the Ramones gig
being particularly violent in 78/79. Penetration in Colchester was
dangerous as well.

At a Clash gig they went over the top in Ipswich and a week or so later
Siouxsie and The Banshees came on their first tour which saw a revenge
attack planned although i cant recall what happened as i was caught up
with the band.

i recall a major off at one of the open air gigs in a London park, maybe
Crystal Palace circa 83 a march for jobs do.

Bristol was always dodgy and Birmingham when roadieing.


-- 
iPat
live for today, live for tomorrow
"Truth is a pathless land. Man cannot come to it through any
organisation, through any creed, through any dogma, priest or ritual,
nor through any philosophic knowledge or psychological technique. He has
to find it through the mirror of relationship, through the understanding
of the contents of his own mind, through observation and not through
intellectual analysis or introspective dissection..."
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