Distorted Magazine March 2009 by Steve Noble

| ISSUE 28 | ISSN 1754-3746 |

photo feature

punk & Disorderly festIVAL 2009

The fight .Flatfoot56

.charm city saints .3 black dwarfs gigs reviewED!

.anti-flag

.RISE Against

EDITOR/Co PUBLISHER_ Cerven Cotter

editor@distortedmagazine.com

ADVERTISING/Co PUBLISHER_ Nikola Cotter nikola@distortedmagazine.com ART/WEB/LAYOUT_ www.pixeldeath.com

SENIOR CONTRIBUTOR_ Steve ‘I’ll get you a job’ Noble steve@distortedmagazine.com CONTRIBUTORS_ John Robb, Rupe Rabble Tim Drunk, Curvball, Fungal Punk/ OMD, LibraSnake, Imelda Michalczyk, and the New Years Fairy.... Contact information_ Distorted Magazine 9 Bridle Close, Surbiton Road, Kingston Upon Thames Surrey, KT1 2JW, UK info@distortedmagazine.com www.distortedmagazine.com Distorted Magazine is published by Distorted Ltd. ISSN 1754-3746 All content is copyright protected © 2006 - 2008. Distorted is a trademark of Distorted Ltd.

Views expressed in the magazine’s content belong to the contributors and do not necessarily reflect those of the publishers. The contents are believed to be correct at the time of publishing. The publishers cannot accept responsibility for any errors, ommissions or for changes in the details given, © 2006 - 2008 Distorted Ltd. All rights reserved. Reproduction in a whole or in part of this magazine is strictly forbidden without prior written consent of the publishers.

One more for the army

his month’s editorial is going to be short - why? I’m running on very few hours sleep (much less than usual) as Cale, our lil boy, has joined us here on planet punk. He was born on the 13th of February and all I can say is that being a dad is an amazing feeling - it really is mind blowing. Not ever did I think I could feel this way, but boy does this little guy make you see the world in a new light. Feel free to send him a message over at his very own website here: http://calecotter.com A huge thank you to everybody for their support over the last few months, I know I’m not the best person in the world in getting back to people, but as things get back to ‘normal’, you can expect many more emails and calls from me. Enjoy the March issue (sorry about the lack of reviews but there’s a ton coming soon...) and hopefully see you at a show soon. ~ Cerven Cotter

Distorted Editor and new dad...

ON THE COVER: Charile Harper, UK Subs, London. © LibraSnake

Features The FIGHT... 16 3 BLACK DWARFS... 20

Punk&Disorderly...26

FlatFoot56... 50

Charm City Saints... 58

REGULARS Editor Notes...... 03 John’S COLUMN... 06 RuPE’S COLUMN ... 08 Reviews...... 54

Mutiny! The John Robb Column

‘Millionaires against poverty!’

‘Imagine no possessions’ once sang Beatle genius John Lennon in his huge mansion with its room set at a certain temperature for his fur coats whilst unwittingly somewhat bizarrely underlining the conundrum that lies at the heart of rock n roll activism. That moment when the heart rules the head and the accountant rules even more. This week’s huge marketing exercise disguised as a new U2 single re-lit this debate with the admittedly charming yet oddly uncharismatic Bono running round the world campaigning against the world debt whilst amassing a huge personal fortune, it doesn’t feel right does it? It’s easy to hate U2 so I’m not going to fall into that trap, they are an ok rock band who have taken all the best bits of great bands and made them into a hugely bankable format peppered with some moments of magic and allied with a marketing machine has made them the so called ‘biggest band in the world’ creating a rock band for people that don’t like rock music! There is an earnest intelligence about what they do and now and then they write a song that can fill a stadium and they at least stand for something. Its cool when rock n roll tries to

change the world for the better, that was sort of a part of package in the first place, you remember the counter culture and all that, so Bono banging on George Bush’s door and attempting to sort out the African debt is interesting, but there is something not quite right here isn’t there? Whilst we rightly seethe at the cunt from the Royal bank Of Scotland walking off with a huge pension whilst the recession takes its vile and loutish grip we seem to let the fact that rock stars and footballers earn far more go. So when Bono asks the Irish government about aid whilst shifting his own huge fortune out of reach then you have to wonder what this is all about. Lets face it U2 could buy the whole Africa tomorrow with their personal wealth and its because of this that they and the rest of millionaires against poverty make me feel uneasy. Weirdly enough one of the bands that grew up with U2 in the Dublin punk scene, Paranoid Visions are still with us, they may never have had the megabucks international success of U2 but they have remained true to their roots. Built around charismatic frontman, Deco- who once got thrown out of a Goldblade gig in Dublin for pissing on a girls leg (she didn’t mind!) Paranoid Visions have had an erratic 30-year existence full of all the mishaps you would expect from a band that lived its life like true punks. I first came across

them in the late eighties when my band the Membranes played a typically crazed show in Dublin in 1987. We stayed in a squatted bank vault and got raided by the Irish secret police whilst Deco had a crew of young punks who followed him everywhere. He was the king of the punks in that great city and his charismatic wild presence was pure Dublin. Years later I played with him again when we went over with Goldblade and remarkably his band was even better with tightly drilled neo-Ruts punk rock they were exciting and armed with great songs and it is thrilling to see that they have a new single out in May that is one of the best punk singles this year (http:// www.myspace.com/paranoidvisions). Fast rising Blackburn band Middle Finger Salute (http://www.myspace. com/middlefingersaluteband) have just been asked onto the Warped tour by Rancid which is a cool perk for a band that has been doing al the hard

work on the grass roots of the UK circuit. In the last year or so they have become festival regulars and their tight anthemic punk rock is starting to make headway and the band is further proof of just how good the UK scene is at the moment- if only we had the same sort of money and marketing power as the American bands someone would sit up and take notice of the groundswell, that whist hardly being an overnight success, is keeping its edge and growing all the time. In America they have a mainstream media that treats punk rock with the respect it deserves and doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t push it to the side. Over there you can hear this music on the radio whilst in the UK so called alternative stations will tell you that punk is too noisy to play, mind you one of these commercial station bosses told me that the new U2 single was too edgy for its playlist! Fuck me, what chance have any of us got! America is punk rock central at them moment and this is underlined by the

Mutiny! The John Robb Column

run of recent gigs I went to with Rise Against taking the melodic end of hardcore and allying it with the idealistic end of punk rock. The band being all vegans and have anti meat eating literature at their gigs- it’s like going to se Crass without the random violence and a quite different soundtrack. In the early eighties Crass played genius avant garde brutal punk rock whilst Rise Against have got their message in the mainstream with their pure pop take on punk which is not a million miles away from the Offspring (who are a lot better group than hipsters would like to admit), the venue was packed and the moshpit was huge and wild as the band tore it up live. The next night the fabulous Bronx strolled into town supported by my favourite current band Fucked Up (http:// www.myspace.com/epicsinminutes) whose psychedelic hardcore is so intelligent, dangerous and stuffed full of ideas that it makes your head spin listening to them, Frontman Pink Eyes is a captivating presencea shirtless big slab of meat of a man who stage dives onto terrified punters. He dominates the room. I love the way the band play with a hardcore intensity but are not scared to fuck with the boundaries of the music like on their current album, ‘the Chemistry Of Common Life’.

Spring is in the air and on the horizon the punk festivals are appearing, the first of which will be the Mutiny festival in Bridlington (http://profile.myspace. com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user. viewprofile&friendid=430617524) , of course I got a vested interest in this one as they named their festival after the latest Goldblade album and I’m happy to report that it’s selling really well. Headlined by Stiff Little Fingers and packing a whole run of great bands it’s a great opening tot he scene which will culminate with the classic Rebellion (http://www. rebellionfestivals.com/ ) in August- rebellion have got a great not yet announced headliner- the news will come though any day now and its always the best punk festival in the world and the one that holds the whole scene together with nearly 5 days of madness back in my hometown of Blackpool… So fuck the recession see you at the seaside! John Robb is the author of Punk Rock: An Oral History and is the frontman of Goldblade.

WordsAre Ammunition! The musings of Rupe Rabble A Punk Rocker’s Tale Have you ever wondered what it’s like to look through the eyes of another? To see, smell, hear and taste exactly what they do? Have you ever felt a desire to try and understand another’s customary reactions to life’s endless choices? Be honest with yourself… I bet at one time or another - we all have!

Oh yes, to gaze through the eyes of Michael Jackson as he engages in his morning rollercoaster ride through ‘Neverland.’ To publicize to the masses through the vision of Martin Luther King Jr. as he declares “I have a dream…” What lunacy or wisdom might rest beneath the surface when peeking into human nature through another man’s eyes? These, our personal windows to the soul! What enlightenment to life’s most darkest and controversial secrets might we find? Why are so many Catholic priests’ paedophiles? How did Charles Manson convince his following of over 18 people that he was in-fact a prophet

and not a maniac? Did Elvis Presley REALLY die as a result of eating far too much peanut butter and bacon sandwiches? And how the hell do you say ‘antidisestablishmentarianism’ without hesitating? Yep, I’m going to imagine it now… I’m stepping into my Grandfather’s slippers for a moment here and it’s interesting what I find! My eyesight is a little blurry and colours look somewhat different, the furniture is sickly shades of brown and yellow and the curtains have atrocious images of ducks covering them, but in some strange way - this looks great! My sense of smell is a little peculiar; I seem to prefer the potent aroma of steamed cabbage to cheeseburgers and in some outlandish way it’s true: that old bastard Tom Jones CAN in-fact sing just a LITTLE better than Johnny Rotten… When you think about it, the possibilities of diversity in the senses are endless for each of us! The beauty of it being that in these variations

we identify who we are… They are the blueprints that define our bloodline; our legacies described through factors of choice! So until technology is at its peak and until cloning is the norm - until the very moment arises that we can take a walk in another person’s sandals for a summer holiday - then through my eyes ‘The Beatles’ will continue to be shit and Opera - a diabolical and bizarre load of bollocks! … Ah, yes - It’s merely the beginning of paragraph four and I seem to already be on a completely different tangent to when I began this column with the title - yep, once again, I’m slowly getting carried away! Like a wind drifting me further off-shore, my streams of thought are trickling through my fingertips and on to this document - but then, a “wet” piece of work won’t do now will it… Nope, “dropping my essay in the toilet” (so to speak) isn’t going to save me in the ‘real world’ like it did so well in school… I will have to persist and find meaning where there is none and in all fairness, I don’t think it’s possible to write a

monthly column on “whatever the fuck springs to mind” and not occasionally lose sight of the chase? You see, there is no job description to ‘Words Are Ammunition’; there are no rules, no risk of being called in to the office on Monday morning for a stern and (perhaps) welldeserved speech from ‘Distorted’s’ own Cervan Cotter himself about “sticking to the point…” Nope, in true freedom-fighting fashion he put a pen in my hand (figuratively speaking) and let this puppy out of the compound! So, to get back on track and more to the point, or as most of you are probably thinking by now - to “get the fuck on with it” - I am going to leave you with an anecdote to brew over about a weird and wonderful rant I had with a local rocker at a bar the other night (yes, even parttime academics have social-lives), whose words somewhat changed a faltering light-bulb in my mind that night! “Yep,” he reassured me, “even in moments of complete confusion, when your best attempts seem to be sitting on a fence, just remem-

WordsAre Ammunition! The musings of Rupe Rabble

ber that we will all most likely leave this world with a certain parallel to madness - and that’s life!”

that we are all equally, completely and utterly insane! At last, a revelation we can all use!

Ding, ding, ding - was that a moment of realisation that just vacated his mouth? Or my spin on a drunken conversation at a Punk gig? Yes, it seems this guy must be on to something because he’s just reaffirmed what I’ve been concerned about for a while now - the whole world has gone completely fucking bonkers!

But, it does make a little sense doesn’t it? I mean, our days on Earth are dictated by the pursuit of money, the desire for a flawless image, a porn-star’s sex-life and a rock-star’s thrills - all of this and a cup of tea aye kids! The sad truth is that real-life is a little more mundane sometimes and unlike Paris Hilton and co. the complete bloody opposite! It’s all bills, taxes and politics - not holidays, beaches and walks in the park (and this is where the ‘Good Charlotte’ brothers tune out.) You see, each of us will have to make decisions based on our “differences in preference” to resolve this dilemma! So, it must be all about the way we deal with things huh!? Yeah, yeah, I can’t believe I haven’t thought of this before - maybe we can find peace and equality in knowing that we are all one big fucked up family?

Hah, ok, ok - so the guy I spoke to wasn’t Albert Einstein and this 3:00 am genius was probably only gargling the poetry of ‘x’ amount of cider! Yes it is more likely that - a bit like me - he wouldn’t even pass a 5th form Science test if his life depended on it - and yes, in all honestly - I spiced up the quote (a little) for literary reasons; but that’s not the point now is it? The point IS, maybe we don’t need to wish to look through the eyes of others to figure out where to belong… Nope, in this guy’s reality we can all feel a sense of satisfaction in knowing

Aren’t we? What do you think went through Mr. George Bush

Jr’s head as the strings were pulled and war was declared on Iraq (he’s one of the REALLY potty members of our extended “family?”) What would have gone through yours? Hopefully not, “shit, I’m the president of the United States and I can’t even read…” or “Damn, got to do another one of those really hard speeches…” Yeah, it would seem that perhaps there are going to be some “eyes” out there that will see a more warped reality than others and I’m guessing Saddam Hussain probably didn’t find Jesus before being executed by the state - but the truth is, I think you’ve got to be a little loony to make it on this Earth and that’s cool with me… I’m going to take some risks, live a little - I just won’t go completely daft and execute people in the hundreds like the latter… So, where am I going with all of this you might ask? I don’t think I set out to have a point when I first started writing, yet in the time it has taken me think about all of this and to use up around ¾’s of my daily brain power I conclude:

we are all different, ‘a Punk Rocker’s tale’ is not always going to be the same as the next, so please don’t go enforcing a uniform lifestyle here! We don’t condemn our differences. We learn to embrace them, you “could be wrong,” or you “could be right” and that’s just fine… You’re going to see things differently than me so I don’t expect you to understand, see that’s just the excitement of our existence right there! If “we’re all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars,” then at 3:00 am after ‘x’ amount of cider; we’re all going to seem a little fucking insane but when 3:30 comes, maybe we will agree on one single thing and in my book - that’s a start! Can you see through my eyes on that one? STAY FREE Rupe Rabble is a vocalist and drummer for The Rabble.

words by Mr Noble

The Fight were talk of the town a few record tie ups and general frustration on the firm road to recovery with new forwards. Vocalist Kate sheds some li

w short years ago. With protracted label disputes, hopefully a thing of the past, The Fight are now material, shows and ambition driving the band ight on their return. So a few years ago with your release of “Nothing New Since Rock ‘n’ Roll” there was a bit of hype around the band, I hear some influential labels were interested? What happened after the album’s release with the extended quiet period? Kate: After ‘Nothin new’, we toured on and off for about two years. Soon after, we recorded our second full length album. As far as we knew our ex- label were gonna put it out. Our label kept saying “we’ll put out a single soon”, “you guys can go on tour soon”, but nothing ever happened. Have the band members stayed in contact throughout? Kate: Yeah, we all still hang out all the time. Our drummer Jack is my brother so we live in the same house anyway. Tom pretty much lives with us too, and Scott’s always about. How has everyone kept themselves busy with this enforced hiatus & have the members kept busy with other projects? Kate: Well we’ve been kept busy with a mixture of working crappy jobs, doing band stuff and side projects. All four of us have been working on our own different styles

THE FIGHT

of music. We got quite heavily into re-mixing, making beats, etc. Is it still the same line-up or have there been changes? Kate: Since our ‘Nothin new’ album, our old bassist left the band to start his own project. Tom Calder is now our bassist. So you mentioned some label woes-Why have there been no recent releases from the band? Where does the band stand at the moment? Kate: Again, it’s all down to label and legal stuff. Our now ex-label were very into the idea of us making a T.V show (crazy I know), and subsequently spent all the budget for the release of our record on that. We are currently unsigned. What have you learned about yourselves and the Music Biz in the past few years that you can take away from this? Kate: I have learned that no matter whether you have a label or not, if you have the right drive and ambition, you can make you’re band whatever you want it to be. Also, don’t trust anyone 100%, cuz you’re open to be fucked over. So you have again started to play

live more recently, what motivated this decision? Kate: Well, we were stupidly bored of being stuck in Dudley with not much going on. We had new songs to play that no one had heard, and playing shows is what we love doing. So, we took it upon ourselves to just book some shows and get back out there. How has playing live felt, have you missed that experience? Kate: Playing live again feels amazing. We have all totally missed it. Getting back on stage is like feeling normal again. I heard some of your new material a few weeks back in London, have you got a bit of new material you are keen to play and record? Do you think there has been a shift in the band’s sound or will fans of old hear more of the same? Kate: We definitely have shifted our sound. We all listen to such different stuff to what we used to. Our tastes have expanded a lot in the past few years. The album of new stuff we wrote has already been recorded, but our old label owns the recordings, so we aren’t allowed to do anything with it. So now we are writing new stuff again. Our newer stuff is more towards our old heavier more energetic sound, but it has definitely moved on from how we used to be. I don’t even know if the fans of our old stuff will be into our newer stuff, but that’s for them to decide.

Are there plans for a new album in the pipeline? Kate: We are thinking along the lines of putting out our own e.p. After all the label bollocks we’ve been through, we think it would be kinda nice to be able to look after our own interests. At this moment in time though we’re not completely sure what’s gonna happen. What else do you think will be in store in 2009? Kate: Tour, tour and tour. Maybe an e.p. Final comments? Kate: Cheese is good.

Under the radar with FungalPunk OMD.

3 black dwarfs

“Yo! We’re 3 Black Dwarfs! For the introduction, we’d just like to thank Dave Fungalpunk for giving us this massive opportunity to have an interview in Distorted magazine! And to let you know this interview will give you around 10% insight into our band and the other 90% lies within our songs and live shows!”

So new kids on the block 3 Black Dwarfs - introduce yourselves, tell us how you came together and a bit about your style of noise. (Bobby): Call me Bobby Mambo ha, ha, I sing and play rhythm guitar. (Mike): I play lead guitar and do backing vocals. (Gaff): I play four skins, I mean strings. (Bass) (Sam): I play steel bins. (Bobby): Ye Sam, not funny… (All): We all went to school together; Bobby and Sam have been in a band since they were 12 years old. At about the age of 16 Mike joined and the year after Gaffer joined. (Sam): We sound like the 4 horsemen of the apocalypse tearing through the gates of heaven. (Mike): Definitely not, we sound like listening to your own brain decay cos the 3 Black Dwarfs have demolished your eardrums. (Gaff): Sweet as moonshine! (Bobby): What Gaff said. I am interested in the band name - 3 Black Dwarfs - it seems there is a bit of anti-PC there which I am all for and was wondering if this is the case. Also can you just add your views on the current clitorally - ooops - politically correct environment! (Bobby): The name started off, with my dad laughing at how tall (lanky) our original line-up was. So we said

we should be called The Dwarfs, then we took the joke one step further and said Black Dwarfs, then the famous number 3 came along! It started off innocently but the more gigs we did and the more people heard of us, the more offence they took. We are all completely un-racist! But we think like most problems in life, its better not to hide from it (change our name) but to confront the problem and say “stop being bloody pathetic, interpret it how you want but you ain’t ruining any of our fun!” We have a new song called ‘Blackboard, Whiteboard, I’m Bored’. Its basically laughing at the irony of people who have a problem with words such as “Black” and “White”, because they live such Black and White lives. P.C has always been that ‘barbed wire in your stomach’ feeling with me. School was a breeding ground for it and that’s a main reason why I had such a bad time. (Gaff): Put it this way, I ain’t calling a blackboard a chalkboard any time soon! Also, having a gay drummer forces us to watch what we say. (Mike): When I go for my pie, I want a gingerbread MAN with it, no bloody gingerbread PERSON! (Sam): We always joke, but we know where the line is (usually when were 500 yards past it). Give us a lowdown on the stuff you write about and are there any politics or hidden agendas we should know about? (Bobby): Most songs I have ever written have had strong influences from

Under the radar with FungalPunk OMD. politics. ‘Prey’ is indirectly my view on war…”we’re all just prey…”. We had a song we don’t do anymore called “USA Go Away” about how much Britain seems to want to be like the USA! This is more of a direct ‘in ya face’ approach. If my songs aren’t about politics they’re about people close to me, they always know who they are but the rest don’t usually get it. I invent scenes, sometimes, such as a film and relate subjects to them such as in the song ‘Don’t Smile For The Camera’ where people always seem to take me as a bad person “ever get the feeling viewers mis-trust you, you’re a framed villain without a clue”. I like to play around with words and situations. Also a big message in my songs is Anarchy, not run around all wild, but never be forced by anyone to do something you don’t want to, at the same time respect others. Listen to the songs ‘One plus One’ and ‘Fight Back’ to see what I mean! So what’s it like being young and setting off in the scene - tell us about the good and bad you have encountered so far! (Bobby): If we go looking for gigs (especially in pubs) elderly people tend to not take us seriously. I could say that’s ageist! (Mike): When we were younger, one of the best things about being in a band was underage drinking in pubs and stuff!

(Gaff): As boring as it sounds, its good meeting new people…and getting rat arsed with them later! (Sam): Other bands piss me off, like when they do their set and leave, also how arrogant they can be cos we’re younger. One of the biggest drawbacks for a newish band at the moment is paradoxically the avalanche of talent out there. How do you hope to compete and have any of you got big ambitions? We all have massive ambitions! The band is the centre point of our lives. (Bobby): I mean I say I don’t want this pop star, wiping my arse with money life, but I would like to be recognized for the lyrics I write, my beliefs and my hard work. (Sam): If you think about it, if bands got big due to talent then all these ‘grade 8’ musos would be famous. Music’s not really about talent anymore, I mean I’m not sure if it ever was, but I know I like what we do and the message we put across, and to me, if music’s about anything, it’s about that. (Mike): What I hate is how just because bands ain’t mainstream, they’re getting ignored. I try to keep my playing original, this could be regarded as talent? (Gaff): I don’t think there’s an avalanche of talent at all, it’s all just made out to be the next best thing, when really it’s the same thing packaged dif-

ferently. Don’t believe the hype! What are your favourite songs of all time and favourite 3 Black Dwarf songs? (Bobby): Ok, I think its down to my mood but if any…’Submission’ by Sex Pistols, dunno why… (Gaff): ‘I am the Walrus’ (Mike): CAN’T BE YOUR FAVOURITE! (Gaff): Joke… (Sam): ‘Freedom’ by Rage Against The Machine. (Mike): ‘I’m Designer’ by Queens Of The Stone Age. (Gaff): ‘In My Head’ by Queens Of The Stone Age. (All): 3BD song. Lyrically ‘Prey’. (Sam): Overall probably ‘Stalemate’. (Bob): ‘Prey’. (Gaff) I agree with Sam ‘Stalemate’. (Mike) ‘Don’t Smile For The Camera’. What are the best and worst gigs you have played so far? (Bob, Sam + Mike): The worst was definitely Player Bar in Ashton-underLyne. Our former bassist didn’t turn up so Bob played bass and sang (for the first time ever). The crowd consisted of some smack head going on about how he was some champion runner and a few indie kids who couldn’t give a monkeys! Ha, ha.

(Gaff): Bar Fever in Wigan when it was empty and we were all pissed! In music you always get the odd bands looking for a gimmick or some such advantage to try and get a bit of notice. I’ve noticed that there are a few makeup shots on the site which do look mightily effective. Is this the new onstage look or just something you did as a laugh? Also do you have any such gimmicks up your sleeve to try and attract attention? (Bobby): Not exactly a gimmick, but

Under the radar with FungalPunk OMD. I like to link our songs together. Our biggest gimmick would probably be the black and white theme we have and if anyone’s naïve enough to dislike us for this, then they need to realize that this is the entertainment industry. People have said to me, “uniform ain’t very punk”, well I’m pretty sure Crass wore all black, so did The Stranglers… (Mike): We have a picture of us with our faces like skeletons but that was for Halloween! I like our black and white theme it looks sexy, also if we are going to wear make-up in the future I think it would look good! (Gaff): I think dressing up in black

and white sort of goes with the issues of our songs, we get run down with “you can’t say black, you can’t say white!” If that’s a gimmick, sit on it! (Sam): Well the make-up is part of our entertainment, our show, but we get a laugh out of it and people seem to like it. (Bobby): Yeah, I also get a lot of people accusing us of attention seeking… being in a band is attention seeking though… The first time I saw you guys was opening an AntiNowhere League show to about 4 punters which for me was an insult to your talent. Don’t fret, as you may know there is a mentality that people have where they only turn up for the familiar and miss out on exciting new outfits. Have you experienced this a lot and how can you combat the apathy of the punters. (Mike): We’ve played a lot of gigs with hardly any people there, but we ALWAYS get something out of it such as the Anti-Nowhere League, we wouldn’t be doing this interview now (cheers to Fungal Punk!). (Bob): Like Mike said earlier about the mainstream. As sad as it sounds people only go for the

general trend whether its fashion or music, it’s the way society is, we know it and we get on with it! (Gaff): Most accomplished bands have been through the dead gigs, but you’ve just gotta take it as part of the deal. (Sam): Well the way we look at it is we’re all mates and we have a laugh every time. We’re a pretty solid Black Dwarf unit! (Gaff): Sometimes I wish I was at home watching Corrie though! Any new releases in the pipeline and where can anyone contact you as regards merch, gigs etc. (Bobby): Yes, were featuring on the ‘Northwest Punk Volume 2’ visit www.myspace.com/nwpunkuk to find out how to get hold of it. (Mike): Visit our myspace which is www.myspace.com/3blackdwarfs to get info on gigs, recordings, merchandise and stuff… we pretty much always reply to any comments or questions so feel free to ‘holla’. (Sam): We give out free demo’s at our gigs and sell our t-shirts as well! (Gaff): You should be hearing a lot of gigs coming our way from www. myspace.com/rebellionrecordsuk and check out www.fungalpunknature.co.uk/ for cd reviews, interviews and cd reviews of us! Finally why should we punkers check out the 3

Black Dwarfs - come on sales time! (Bobby): Well I think that there’s very few bands that have such bold, opinionated messages. We carry that spirit that can trigger uproar in our society! (Sam): If anyone knew how much hard work went into our music…then you’d know you need us in your lives, ha, ha! (Gaff): We don’t beat around the bush with our songs laddy. (Mike): We put 110% effort into our music and live performances, I hope you ‘punkers’ appreciate this!

The EUROPUNK GATHERING

punk & disordely festival

All Photos by LibraSnake

l 2009

punk & Disorderly festival 2009

mission untitled

Words by Steve Noble

Fiery Chicago based Celtic Punk rockers Flatfoot 56 are hard at work on their 5th album. We managed to politely interrupt their busy recording month to see how things were going on the new, as of yet untitled record, and how a certain producers input has helped shape the record. Oh yeah, Justin Bawinkel (drummer) also tells us why his dogs had to be shaved because of the band. Hi guys please tell us a little about the band and who does what? Justin: Hey Steve, Hope your doing well. My name is Justin and I play the drums and do a bit of singing. Tobin is the main vocal and guitar as well as the main songwriter. Kyle plays Bass and does vocals also. Josh is the bagpiper and mandolin player. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been together for about nine years and touring for about the last five years. We all live in

Chicago and love it. So the digital birdie says you are in the studio recording the new album? Where are you recording and how have things been going to date? Justin: The bird is right! Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been in the studio in Houston, TX. Since the beginning of February, John Rioux from the Street Dogs is producing us and doing an awesome job. He is a great guy

flatfoot56

to work with. The songs are turning out really well, and I’m excited to let people hear them. This is not your first album so how have things shaped up in comparison to previous releases? Justin: The new record is definitely more mature sounding. I think we have progressed as musicians and songwriters, and are going to turn out a solid album that is unique to us. I think it’s a good progression from our last album. And you mentioned a certain Johnny Rioux on board -how do you know him and why was he the choice man for the job of producer/engineer? Justin: Johnny is an awesome guy who has a great ear and love for music. We met him last Fall when we got the opportunity to go on tour with the Street Dogs. Great tour! He expressed some interest in producing our next record and we jumped on it. He’s worked with a ton of bands

and we trust his judgment a lot when it comes to song construction. How has the collaboration worked, as my understanding is that Johnny is on the road with The Street Dogs this month too? Justin: We have had his full attention throughout February and the Street Dogs start their tour on the 1st of March. We have been working together really well, and making some great progress. So what has he brought to the table to ensure that the record will be as good as it can be? Justin: He has a ton of great Ideas that we have worked into the development of the new songs. He is a great producer in the way that he is willing to work with everyone’s ideas equally. Also he doesn’t directly make song changes. He makes suggestions and inspires you to change it. He is really like a trusted outside ear that helps you organize your thought so you can write a great song. Has touring taken a back seat during the recording process, or are you still playing

shows? Justin: We’ve played one show since being in the studio. Otherwise it’s been straight recording. We play a few more shows on our way home. Did you play any of the new material live before entering the studio? How did that go down? Justin: One song called “Stampede” we’ve been playing live for a couple months and people are loving it. We tried out a couple other songs live and they went over really well, but they were nowhere near being done at the time. Do you find the recording studio a good place to be or a pent up boiler room of tension? How does everyone get on with other peoples artistic input? Justin: I generally don’t like recording, but this record has come together nicely. We’ve all been working together really well with limited brotherly fighting. Haha! It has been frustrating before, but not this time. We all seem to like the direction the songs are taking. Have there been any funny stories to take

flatfoot56 away from the process? Justin: Well, we accidently ran over a possum on Johnny’s street and his dogs dragged it back to his house where they rolled in its guts. They smelled so bad after that, the dogs had to be shaved. I felt bad. We also spent some free time ice skating. That’s kind of funny for a bunch of big dudes in humid Houston. So when will things be wrapped up and when do you anticipate a release of the record? We will leave the studio on March 1st with a nearly final mix and I’m not sure when the record will come out. We would like to happen in the summer or fall, but these things almost never happen when you want.

Can you tell us the name of the record? Justin: I could, but I don’t even know yet! Haha! Steve: How excited are you about the album and what can your fans expect? Justin: I’m really excited! As far as the fans...good luck! Expect the unexpected. Get ready to get punched in the face by a wall of epic noise that makes your legs try to run away from your battered and bruised idea of everything you thought you knew about music! Thanks so much for the interview Steve!

R EV IEWS Don’t take our word for it, make up your own mind!

SHOWS & GIGS

RISE AGAINST ANTI-FLAG 02 Academy, Livepool 23th February 2009

You ’d think that the rowdy, political nettle grappling Pennsylvanian punks Anti-Flag would have ran out of angst, bemusement and things to stand up against, given that their country now has the President they so sorely wanted and that the Steelers won the Super Bowl this year. Bleach haired bellowing bassist, Chris Barker soon puts paid to that idea, as he struts onto stage and implores everyone to; “Raise Your middle Fingers!” The salute that followed could have graced any trooping of the colours. It leads neatly into the old school punk tirade, ‘Fuck Police Brutality’. Justin Sane’s combative vocals lead the battle cry and most importantly he delivers it with his usual spit and gusto, demonstrating that Anti-Flag still stand up against injustice and they still believe that it’s still out there. Their main motto for the last 21 or so years appears to have been one of uniting as a community against the ills of world and its politicians, something

that the poignant British punk rooted ‘Fuck War Let’s Party’ puts into a nutshell. Suddenly their spirited vigour reaches out and spreads around like...? Well, war actually, as the room starts bouncing. Even the forays into pop punk like ‘Turncoat’, still have an edge to them with Pat Thetic’s bulleting percussion and Sane’s sincerity keeping it from falling into a sappy pit, it is the thumping anthem that the evening needs. Variety is splattered around in the haunting interlude inclusive, ‘Good And Ready’ that shows a smoother edge to Sane’s Vocals before an ad-libbed cover of ‘I Fought The Law’, spews out nostalgia as though they were reading from a George Orwell novel. This offering from the last year’s spirited The Bright Lights of America’, is as popularly received as the now old classics. These forty five minutes highlights Anti-Flag’s continuing importance to modern punk. A chilling voice over blares out political insight and rebellion, Tim McIlrath and his insurrection inciting buddies who conjoin to make Rise Against , dive full force into 2006’s ‘Drones’, setting the mood for their heart-on-sleeve, insightful and forceful interpretation of punk. This energy and verve is chan-

> ALBUMS > EPs > BOOKS > GIGS

nelled straight into the post-rock pushed, Thursday feeling ‘Ready To Fall’, as the piercing ‘The Sufferer & the Witness’ album is drawn from again. Grit, sincerity and energy are in abundance and this is harnessed by an exuberant, catharsis indulging Monday night crowd. McIllrath’s vocal range lends heart and versatility to a stirring set. However, for a band of Rise Against’s standing the big test is always the new numbers. It is the response to these that should be used to gauge the band’s ability to keep on building their range and standing. Latest single, ‘Audience Of One’ bears out their personal side unveiling a more polished touch and lending a universal appeal to proceedings. Erstwhile bassist and co-founder member Joe Principe is, as always, sturdy and reliable in punctuating the stark political commentary of the band. These political observations are now beginning to feel have the feel of an alternative encyclopaedia, given Rise Against’s prolific tendency over the years to highlight what’s going on in the world. His contribution to the hardcore cutting, ‘Behind Closed Doors’ is captivating in the way that he controls the pace, volume and rhythm. Emo titling, ‘Re Education (Through Labor)’ still retains its thrust with a pit forming in appreciation and energy lev-

els continue to rise with help from the Bad Religion mirroring, ‘Heaven Knows’. Variety is doled out with help from the psychobilly skirting, ‘Collapse’ and those who like to be able to think about song the song and its lyrics meditate over the bracing, ‘The Good Left Undone’. Naturally, the Wal-Mart bating ‘Prayer of the Refugee’, keeps enthusiasm levels ticking over nicely. Rise Against, through this spirited live performance tonight continue to bolster their reputation as inclusive punks who attitude still burns bright. - Dave Adair

ANTI-FLAG

The Old Blue Last, east London 20 February 2009

A small, east London pub venue crammed to the rafters with a sweaty, enthusiastic crowd might not sound like anything particularly earth-shattering. But make that a totally free all ages gig, in the middle of the afternoon (half-term week), by long established and respected US political punkers Anti-Flag, and you have something a bit special. Given that they could fill a much bigger Xray Spex venue with a paying crowd, you have to © Symond Lawes respect them for taking the time out from their tour with Rise Against to do the ul-

R EV IEWS Don’t take our word for it, make up your own mind!

> ALBUMS > EPs > BOOKS > GIGS

timate ‘giving something back to the fans’ freebie. Taking requests for the set list online prior to the show and giving away a new 7inch single to everyone in the crowd, it’s hard to think how Anti-Flag could actually have been any nicer to their fans. With no support, the four-strong band launch straight into over an hour’s set. And with the show running a little late, the crowd is more than ready and every song is greeted with cheers and crowd-surfing. Hearing mammoth tracks like ‘Turncoat’ belted out in such a tiny room does make you feel lucky to see such a good band away from the concert hall/festival circuit. And despite the size of the floor, we’re treated to more than one attempt at a circle pit from some of the most high energy members of the crowd. As I leave, I notice that whilst many bands run off stage for a drink/cigarette/rest as soon as their set is over, Anti-Flag step straight off stage and into conversations with their many fans hanging around. Anti-Flag - the polite, accommodating and yet still staunchly political face of punk rock. _ Imelda Michalczyk

Words by Steve Noble. Photos by Lucas

Hooligans or Saints? With extended periods of time between records being the flavour of the month, we managed to catch up with Ayres of Charm City Saints, as they wrap up production on their first album since 2005 “Never Go Home again”. Honing their Celtic sound on “Hooligans and Saints”, the band hopes the new record will place them firmly back on punk rock map.

Hi, so it’s been a while since we spoke to you, a year in fact, how are things going with the band? I hear there have been some changes? AYRES: Steve, we have had our ups and downs this past year, but it seems that everything has levelled out and now we are doing great again! Yeah, we lost Jeff around November of ’08. He was our “jack of all trades” when it came to trad instruments. However, with him leaving, we picked up Tim on Highland Pipes and Tin Whistle and Peter on Button Accordion. And I have taken up

mandolin duties on a few songs. And a new album is on the way? How has the recording process been going and where are you recording? AYRES: Yeah. We started recording in October of 2007. About half way through our record company at the time told us that they were out of money and couldn’t finish paying for the recording. So we picked up the rest of the payments ourselves. With us doing that, we recorded when we had money and time. I am pretty sure it was just about a year in the

Charm city saints

studio. We hooked up with a great recording engineer named Mike Bossier. He owns a studio in Maryland down by D.C. called Oblivion Recording Studio. Steve: And when can the world see the new album in stores? AYRES: Fuck, I hope soon.. It seems so long ago that we started working on this CD. We just finished some re-mixing and the mastering as of February 22nd. So I would say an April release at the latest. Have you had any issues

with getting the studio time and a label to put the album out? AYRES: Well, to go back to what we were talking about earlier. Once our old label pretty much told us they were done, we had to come out of pocket for everything. So that slowed things down a bit. I mean, putting food on the table was more important at times then shelling out money for recording. But, it all worked out, I guess? I did shop the idea of picking up the new cd around to a few new labels. We started talking to Michal from 4Subculture Records out of the Czech Republic through our

myspace page. He was interested in releasing the CD for us, so we worked out a pretty good deal that would work for both of us and decided to go with 4Subculture Records. Have you approached this album in a different way to previously? AYRES: Hell yeah. When we recorded the ‘Never Go Home Again’ e.p. we recorded in one weekend and mixed and mastered another. It was good for what it was. It got the point across. But this time around we had time to get the recording we wanted. Spreading the recording out over a year was nice in a way. We had time between session to really spend listening to the material, and it gave us the opportunity to rework or fix things where previously we would have just settled on leaving mistakes in due to time restraints. And the title of the new album ‘Hooligans and Saints’- is there a good/bad theme running through the record or did the name just sound good? AYRES: A little bit of both. It is a play on words of sorts. The meaning has a few different layers to it. One being a kind of self struggle of good and bad within oneself. You know, trying to find that right balance to keep you sane.

How happy are you with the record to date, and are you anxious about playing the new material? AYRES: Yeah, we are really happy with the way this record has finally tuned out. It has taken a little longer to get it out than we fucking had hoped but It was worth the wait. You know, the biggest complaint we had from the e.p. was that is wasn’t long enough. The new record is 17 tracks and we have already started playing the material at shows. I think now what we are really anxious about is working on new material with Tim and Peter in the fold. If we were a radio station and had to pick one song to playlist off the new album which would it be and why? AYRES: Easy, we do a medley of 3 pub tunes. “Rodai Mhic Corlaí”/ “Whiskey In The Jar”/ “Finnegans Wake”. Why? I think that tune showcases the direction that we are heading musically. Is March a notoriously busy month or as a busy as any other with St Patricks day slap bang in the middle? AYRES: Normally it is. This year we have decided not to oversaturate ourselves. Also, last March we had a lot of shows booked. Jesse partially collapsed his lung

Charm city saints at a show we were headlining. He actually couldn’t finish out the set. He left the show and drove to the hospital. He made it through Shamrock Fest and the St. Patrick’s Day show while singing with a collapsed lung but we didn’t rehearse for 6 months after that! So we didn’t want to put him through that again this year. Speaking of Shamrock Festival what are you expecting this year? AYRES: Last year was our first time playing Shamrock Fest. Holy shit, was that a great time. This year is going to be 10 times better. There are a lot of great bands this year. We can’t wait. Are you embarking on a tour to support the new release? And are there any plans for a trip abroad this year? AYRES: We are looking to get out and do some mini tours in support of ‘Hooligans and Saints’. It’s tough to get out on the road for long periods of time. Most of us have families, wives, kids. We work real jobs to pay the bills, put food on the table and make ends meet. Music is something we do to keep us sane in this fucked up world. We have talked in the past about hitting Japan and Europe but it is a matter of everyone getting their schedules inline with each other. I’m not sure if this is as

true State-Side of the pond, but Folk music is up on the rise, and I know you have roots in that area, why would you guess at why that is, does the economic climate have anything to do with it? [Back to blue collar basics?] AYRES: Sure, I think so. A guy and just a guitar and a message are a pretty powerful thing. Folk music has always been working class music. Music with a statement. And it is truer now than ever. The war, the economy gone to shit etc. So yeah I think they go hand in hand.. Any final comments? AYRES: Yeah, just wanted to thank you for the support you have giving to us. And just to let everyone know to keep an eye out for the new CD “Hooligans and Saints” around April. Slan!