i hear flux were spectacular.

Well well well - the night after the weekend that was - briet bullet points from me
to those that didn't go for whatever reason - you missed a blinder
flux of pink indians - wow it was like 1981 all over again
Steve Ig and mates - great to hear Crass (and Schwartzennegar) songs played with professional musicians - the songs benefitted and sounded soooo powerful - 30 years on and the relevance of the music/lyrics remains - but wow what a sound and what a drummer
As for anarchy - there were people smoking in the bogs, albeit with fear and trepidation in their eyes, but hey ho rules is rules ...


what a weekend - shame on those that didn't fancy it .....

Last edited by MadMart (2007-11-26 22:53:18)

Some thoughts in no particular order on attending the show on Sunday:

Was one of about twelve people at the show not dressed up Punk

Was disappointed to have missed Zounds

Was really pleased to have missed Conflict

Was really bored by Flux of Pink Indians. A really overrated band, really not good

I thought the sound at the place was good as it turned out

The projections and lighting were kind of lame

Steve's band absolutely rocked. I mean that they did the set, not like Crass, but like a really tight, storming rock & roll band. It was terrific. He's a fantastic performer. It was a treat and a joy. And although he said it wasn't about nostalgia, well it was in a way, and I'm not particularly embarrassed about that

Was very pleased to be upstairs in the cheap seats. Especially as all the continental punks found it entertaining to throw their nearly empty (plastic) beer glasses over the balcony. I mean why is that important? or is this just a new-found conservative streak that has hit me relatively recently? It was sort of disturbing to recognise some faces in the crowd from a long time ago, still stuck there a long time ago, drunk and stupid. Maybe all punk really was about was about being drunk and stupid. And young. As a uniform punk still looks chic on skinny girls, less so on fat, balding blokes

Was really pleased to get a Bracketpress poster on the way out, a real work of beauty. As I handed over the cash an old toothless drunk punk next to me complained "fifteen quid? that's a fucken outrage for a poster". The bloke behind the counter tried to explain that they were hand-printed and took three days to dry but the gummy punk wasn't listening

There was probably more to say

sonofstan wrote:

Was one of about twelve people at the show not dressed up Punk

Mate, I think if you still "dressed up punk" to go and see Crass 25 years ago you'd kinda missed the point to begin with.

I'm not fat or balding (yet!) and I was wearing a nice Margiela trench-coat, but I think it's great when I see old punks who've probably got grand-kids still with green mohicans. If that's how they wanna look and that's what makes them happy who the fuck is anyone to criticise them? It's not for me and I did my fair share of slagging off the post-card punks and uniformity of the scene back then, but, at the end of the day, wouldn't the world be a boring place if we all looked the same?

Agree with what you say about the beer-glass chucking though. Those sort of folk are just f*cking idiots. If i'd been doing security i'd have thrown them out on their arses, but, surprisingly the bouncers there seemed to be a lot more tolerant and amiable than i'd have been.

It's easy to be jaded and cynical but, really, it was the smiles on everyone's faces outside the venue and on the last tube home which showed just how much it had meant to so many there.

vids from gig

BIG A little a http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hS8Kl282Xzw

bloody revolutions  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2J41GWf-wM

shaved women http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFKLN-Mp … ature=user

do they owe us a living  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UB78JiTc … ature=user

Have to agree with Chris about the gig, what a great weekend. Just pissed off I didn't get to meet all the people I had told, I would, I see you met up with Sean, Chris. A big thanks to Chris G for the photo pass etc, cheers mate, when I get round to it I'll post some on here, although having a quick look at them most are shite, have to see how my old SLR pic's turn out. We were only allowed to take photo's for three songs, which was a bummer. I know John Esplen (Overground records) was pissed off that he couldn't set up his stall for the two days. Anyway thought the sound for Conflict and Zounds was poor, but Flux were brilliant, very tight, Ian Glasper told me if the response from the crowd was good they may do more gig's, I think we can get ready for a Flux tour, they were brilliant, Col didn't look any older than the last time I seen him at Sunderland Bunker 84. Steve and the gang were brilliant too, hope you enjoyed the pint at the after show party mate, you deserved it, and thanks for taking time out to talk, top bloke. Wouldn't it have been nice to have all the bands backdrops instead of the slides, apart from Steve's set the rest were piss poor. Anyway just finnished night shift after getting back from London (5 hour train journey) at 4-15pm then straight to work at 6pm, so forgive me if this all sounds messed up, I'm knackered. Oh couldn't remember the girl singers name Chris but had a good crack with her after the Sat show, she told me she was shitting herself about the gig, she did o.k. though, like she said, she couldn't fill Eve's shoes. Some other Crass members were meant to be at the after gig show on the Sunday, did they turn up, couldn't go due to them damn tube trains, hope the girl I gave my ticket to enjoyed it, when I told her about it, she said it was the nicest chat up line she had ever had, bizarre. Might get the pics on today or tomorrow.

The lady singing was Sadie Nine: Radio and TV presenter. http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/communicate … nine.shtml

this was the best weekend of my life I was meant to come home sunday but stayed til monday with the help of some lovely people from guernsey. so amazing the full moon and leaves in shepherds bush the tube convoy to tufnell park being soaked with cider meeting people who share the same attitudes. WOW is all I can say I am still shell shocked. And all the bands were brilliant and the visuals were cool I thought.  after missing work yesterday I have already been told off in work this morning but nothing or no-one can get to me over this I am floating in a bubble of anarchy bliss. yeeehaw

First   nickb    as far as I am aware Crass were planning on playing Dublin when they were doing the Belfast gig  but Dublin corporation refused them permission to play.....(it was a different Southern Ireland in those day's) so alas  it never did happen.

A couple of points on the feeding gig  (a gang of us came over from Dublin)

Son of stan ....  I  think you underestimated the figure on non punky loooking people at gig....... there were a lot lot more than 12!!!! and did we see the same flux band   I thought they were mind blowing , tight and sounded great .....  but it's all personal taste I guess

Zound's were good   did enjoy them a lot after they warmed up a bit,   though was a bit taken a bit by Steve Lakes choice of drink on stage  (i was right up front)  a can of coca cola .........  shock horror!!!!   no........  relax everyone   Im not the pc police, but for fucks sake steve  what was that all about  ?? check out  the mark thomas excellent  program show on more 4 last week about the  not so nice    coca cola corporation......

I did take it up with him after the gig in the nicest possible way!!!    after all    who am I too lecture the singer from a band who really influenced me!!!  but all he really said was he got it free backstage and he couldn't believe he did it???

Backtofront .......glad you brought up two good points .......  15 for a t shirt was complete rip off......Steve ignorant did indeed play a blinder of a set   really enjoyed it....last time I saw him doing crass covers  oh I meant songs!!!!    was brixton in '86.    but a lot of  crass and what was been sung i think was lost on the guitar players, mainly the one who spent most time posing with his rolled up at the arm muscle top!!!!! film in the backround on the second night was good too.
I did also get a bit of stick from security for taking pics up the front....he shone his torch into  my small non prof camera to stop me!!!!!  A couple of glass/bottle throwing at gig and outside  but all in all everyone well behaved   A great weekend had and glad to have travelled over from Ireland for it.....impossible to fing a pub on sunday night after 12...which would have been nice but you cant have everything I suppose!!!!

Last edited by Slainte (2007-11-27 19:09:35)

I'm very pleased to see everything went well this weekend and that people came away feeling positive about the experience. I couldn't get down there unfortunately due to various commitments at home.

Steve is a very dear friend of mine and whatever his reasons for playing the gig, I fully support him in every respect. I expected it to be more a celebration of a fine body of work rather than any shallow exercise in empty nostalgia. I'm glad people saw it that way too.

I've only recently happened upon this forum and have been reading with interest recent posts. I was somewhat disturbed by certain attitudes regarding the motives behind the gig. It can only be a good thing that something is happening, not matter what the content? I bumped into an old friend last week who was taking his 14 year old son down, as he was really into Crass. There must be a fair ammount of people in a similar position too? He could have taken him to see the Pistols in Manchester last week instead?

I saw the Pistols last time they played Manchester in December 1976, twice actually, but had no desire to see them perform in a vast arena. Listening to a recording of that gig though, I must admit they still sound pretty good.

I saw Crass play 100's of times and it was never about the music. For me, and many others it was about meeting and talking to people. I suspect a lot of that went on this weekend and hopefully something positve with grow from that. A friendship, a band, a fanzine/book/film whatever?

It can only be a good thing.

Cheers for now, Andy T

I had no intention of going along but at the last minute (literally about half an hour beforehand) got a call from a friend who had a spare ticket so thought "sod it why not".

I have to say it was exactly what I expected in terms of the gig itself, a great rock and roll show with Steve putting all his heart and soul into the performance. I found myself singing along with every word of every song from 'Feeding' as well as the singles, and was actually quite surprised just how 'hard wired' into my brain those lyrics are! Where I was (right at the back on the ground floor) the audience seemed a mixture of folks like myself from 'back in the day' who were relatively reserved and viewing the thing with a mixture of nostalgia and curiosity, to the young punks, many of whom weren't even born when Crass called it a day, who were clearly really excited at having this chance to see and hear such legendary and influential songs performed live by at least one of 'the originals', I even ended up dancing with one green spike haired young lady who I guess was about my daughters age!

But I'm still ambivalent about the whole thing. I know Steve well and have no questions about his integrity, and he's said both in private conversations and more recently in public that he always had some regrets and even resentment that he didn't make more money through Crass, and that actually, yes, he did always want to be a rock star but picked the wrong band! Its also not the money thing, £15 for a (good quality) teeshirt seems quite reasonable for these days, I've just upped the prices of the ones I sell through Spiralseed as well, £17 for the gig itself is also reasonable in 2007. The £15 'music hall' posters by Chistain Brett were also beautiful and again i know Christian to be a craftsman of integrity. Besides, nobody had to go to the gig, buy a teeshirt or a poster, its not like any of these things are compulsory... So it would be great to raise the debate beyond the rather crass (ha ha, see what I did there??) level of "it's all a rip off!" My unease is on a feel a deeper level - as I said it was great rock and roll and an entertaining show, even if I did get the feeling that I was at some historical re-enactment society event at times (right down to puking punk rocker mentioned above, I found myself wondering if that was genuine or a nice little attention to detail on the part of the organisers ), but to me Crass weren't about that (and said as much), they were about ideas, communication and doing something radical, revolutionary even, which that gig wasn't. Just things  like that fundamental disconnection between 'performers' and 'audience', which never existed at Crass gigs, there was never any seperation. At the end I went down to the front as I wanted to say hi to the brass section, who I know through the Southend jazz club, but there was no way of reaching them, just a load of bouncers who didn't give a fuck and no way they were letting me go backstage. Back in the day we'd all be drinking tea and sweeping up together.

I was at Dial House yesterday where there was that same ambivalence and doubt, the guys from Anima Mundi were there who also said that they felt uncomfortable with the size and nature of the gig (William from AM played guitar with Conflict), Gee didn't really know what to think, and Penny unfortunately wasn't well and I didn't see him, but I suspect that the whole thing has caused quite a rift between him and Steve that goes deeper than the 'Penny should lighten up about it all' type comments would suggest, and that in itself makes it difficult for me to see this event as celebratory.

Last edited by quercusrobur (2007-11-27 19:21:48)

would some 1 please link me to the fight wars not wars vid please