Obituary - Roland s. Howard

On Wednesday 30th December 2009, Roland S. Howard, guitarist of iconic Australian band, THE BIRTHDAY PARTY, died in a Melbourne Hospital. His death was the result of an on-going battle with liver cancer. He was aged 50.

Howard had been awaiting a liver transplant for some time, and due to his illness, had to cancel several shows including one in Melbourne the day before he died with the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Earlier in December, he had to cancel a show after being admitted to hospital. His last public performance was back in October at St Kilda’s Prince Bandroom. According to reports, he struggled through the show, coughing and spitting up blood.

Born on 24th October 1959, Howard’s musical career began in the late 70s with the band The Obsessions, although his first band of note was early Aussie Punks BOYS NEXT DOOR which also included Nick Cave in its line-up. In 1979 he wrote the band’s cult hit ‘Shivers’. BOYS NEXT DOOR eventually mutated into what became the legend that is BIRTHDAY PARTY. Nick Cave fronted the band throughout its tempestuous lifetime, while Howard provided a six-string sonic attack that welded feedback-laced blues riffs with some startling, reverb-drenched, slashing Punk stylings.

Following the band’s split in 1983, Howard went onto play in bands like CRIME AND THE CITY SOLUTION and THESE IMMORTAL SOULS, and collaborate with the likes of HENRY ROLLINS, NIKKI SUDDEN, JEFFREY LEE PIERCE and LYDIA LUNCH.

This year, he released what was his second solo album, the critically acclaimed ‘Pop Crimes’. On the album's title track he prophetically sang, ''I guess that I won't see you tomorrow. On this, our planet of perpetual sorrows''.

Along with music, Howard appeared in several feature-length films, such as Wim Wenders’ 1987 movie ‘Wings of Desire’, 1990’s ‘In Too Deep’ and the 2002 vampire film ‘The Queen of the Damned’ in which he cameod as a musician in a vampire club band. His role in the Australian Punk movement has also been captured in Richard Lowenstein’s documentary, ‘We’re Living On Dog Food’.

Howard's father, brother and sister all live in Melbourne.

Show Time!

REBELLION FESTIVAL, Blackpool UK, 6th-9th August 2009

Every year you hear the same thing – “It’s like one of those old teddy boy conventions”. Really? Did the teddy boys have 40 or 50 new bands (many of them good) at a festival to choose from? Or maybe the whingers and moaners themselves are the jaded old cunts. One of the worst days in my life was the day of Xmas On Earth in 1981 – an all dayer (a new concept back then) in Leeds that I’d saved up for for months. I didn’t even get three miles before the bus got stuck in a snowdrift. Imagine if I knew then that one day there’d be four whole days of Punk Rock with bands from all over the world on three or four stages! I can understand those on the dole or a low wage giving it a miss – the various costs soon mount up – but many of the biggest critics have good jobs, and will be sitting in their rocking chairs in 20 years time saying “I wished I….”
THURSDAY
A four hour bus journey later it was check in at the B&B and straight off to the venue where GEOFFREY OICOTT were setting up in The Arena. You probably know the script by now – Yorkshire Oi band who sing about cricket, with plenty of double entendres thrown in – for example 'Bouncers', a reference to awkward bowling practice or a dig at our friends in security? Then there’s 'LBW' which, turns out, is short for 'Lager Before Women' (I got a LBW bottle opener when they played the toon, Dawn wasn’t impressed!) Musically they are basic (but powerful) Oi with CONDEMNED 84 style vocals (no comparisons politically though!) and they put on a good show, playing most of the songs from 'The Good The Bad And The Googly' LP and also a couple off the new 7”, 'I Was Monty’s Double' (including the PARTISANS cover, now christened '17 Pints of Ale'!).
It was all change this year as the main bar became the home of acoustic acts which made for difficult conversations over a pint (which incidently was £2.80 or £3 depending on if you got the dodgy barman. Good pint of snakey as long as you avoided the gig rooms cos they had fucking Strongbow Extra Cold, which is just plain wrong.). Meanwhile the Pavillion was turned over to an art show for most of the time which didn’t amuse the stallholders as it meant less prospective punters passing through.
The rest of the night was spent mainly socialising, although we did catch the CUTE LEPERS in The Empress (2500 capacity yet somehow with a decent sound). Almost didn’t recognise them as Steve E Nix’s blond barnet is now a more conservative colour (did you see that? I used the word ‘conservative’ without also using the word ‘cunt’!). Anyway just about all their album on display plus one of their best songs 'Young Hearts' from the new split 7” with the DISCO LEPERS - basically THE BRIEFS with a bit 60’s melody thrown in. Dawn says the bird from THE NIPPLE ERECTORS made a guest appearance for one song, yet I was watching and didn’t even know (some reviewer!).
The hectic proceedings meant an early night for us (this became a bit of a theme, especially when toothache set in; sleep not helped by soft pillows, knobheads shouting in the streets till 5am and the loudest seagulls I’ve ever heard)
FRIDAY
Must go down in history as the most badly managed attempt at a review in history, for today we saw a whole TWO bands fully!! Socialising, drinking, afternoon kip, anything but what a reviewer shoulda been doing. I returned from my slumber to catch the PORK DUKES at 6.20pm. The Olympia now has two stages. The main stage from previous years (a complete waste of both the bands’ and the punters’ time), and another one at the side which sounds good if you’re in front of it. Luckily PORK DUKES were on the side stage. Not pretty, but a tight, powerful performance that had far more oomph than the original records. Songs from the heyday ('Telephone Masturbator', 'Big Tits' etc) to the 2nd LP ('…Gun For Xmas') to the comeback stuff. Some cracking tunes over the years and music that is made for drinking. The sight of two fat, bald 50-yr-olds enjoying themselves will probably piss off the PC hypocrites even more (sexism = bad ; sizeism/ageism = perfectly acceptable).
It was good to see Bison back in the fold, manning the stall in the Olympia, selling zines like hotcakes and saving me ending up with arms like Lurch from the Addams Family. This is another good thing about Rebellion – there is always a huge selection of stalls, most of which have an ever changing selection of goodies throughout the weekend.
Dawn joined me for the new line up of DEMOB who played much the same set as the last time I seen em a few years ago. 'Teenage Adolescence', 'Anti Police' and 'Think Fast' still sounded mighty fine and 'No Room For You' of course brought the house down with no shortage of volunteers on backing vocals.
Off we went to see ARGY BARGY who these days play with the confidence of a band whose last album put them in the big league (I stole that description from Nigel from Derby, but nothing else sums em up better). They properly went for it… unfortunately the sound was fucking appalling. A swimming bath has better acoustics than the Olympia.
So pub, and another early night.
SATURDAY
By far the best line up, and what better start than LOS FASTIDIOS (pictured <) in the Empress. Good sound, lively performance, and all their best stuff including the ones about football, the Housemartins tribute, and a couple of more from their excellent new CD. Singalong Italian Oi/Ska/Punk (some of it in English) and making no bones where they stand politically (anti-fascist/vivisection/homophobia). 'Stay Rude Stay Rebel' seemed to have half the 500+ crowd skanking which ain’t bad for 2PM in the afternoon. Had to choose chilling time wisely today so off back to the B&B and back to venue for NEWTOWN NEUROTICS (which meant two of Dawn’s all-time faves within two hours, I really can’t understand the moaners). A new line up but virtually the same set – plenty of 'Beggars' LP ('The Mess' , 'Agony' etc), most of the singles including 'Kick Out The Tories' (which probably isn’t quite out of date yet unfortunately) and thankfully very little from the lacklustre 'Bolsheviks' LP. Had a quick chat with Mr Drewett who was chilling with his family in the bar later and I think he said Colin can’t gig anymore for health reasons (bad back or something).
Took Dawn to a fancy restaurant (Harry Ramsdens) then I went back to see THE FREEZE. Clif Hanger must be pushing 50 but still jumped around like a lunatic. From the back the tunes were hard to make out, and they didn’t seem to be doing owt from their best CD ('Freak Show'), preferring instead to cater for the HC clientele, so I buggered off to see MAJOR ACCIDENT. Last time I saw em at Morecambe, they were great. Tonight they were lumbered with the Olympia stage and it was, quite honestly, painful to watch a good band destroyed by the acoustics of the Grand Canyon. 'Respectable' – never their finest moment – sounded especially out of tune (even though it probably wasn’t!) and I reluctantly departed for Scruffy Murphys (one of the few boozers with a decent pint, as long as ya stick to snakey).
Dawn left for the B&B but the AMEBIX slot had been given to LAST RESORT, which is like swapping a lifeboat for a tea bag, but who am I to complain? The last time I saw LAST RESORT was five years ago in Morecambe around about the time their comeback CD 'Resurrection' was released - pretty forgettable heavy Oi that seemed to be trying to be USHC like MADBALL (even the old songs/4-SKINS covers sounded metally that night). But what a difference five years makes. The new CD really is worthy of the subtitle 'Skinhead Anthems 2'. So we got the best songs off that ('Beyond The Promised Land', 'War Widow', 'Cockleshell Heroes' etc) mixed with the early classics, with a leaner meaner Roi Pearce leading the charge like a fully tattooed psychotic extra from Lock Stock. This was proper drinking music and 2000 strong crowd loved it.
SUNDAY
Having as much sleep as a Guantanamo detainee is not the best way to start the final day, but thankfully GIMP FIST (pictured <) can liven anyone up. Most of the classics from the first two CDs plus songs from their next album (to be recorded in November) like 'Heart & Soul' and 'Skinhead Not Bonehead' were played to a very respectable (for 1pm) crowd of about 700. Michael (drummer) drew the short straw and was absolutely besieged on the merch table afterwards. Two years ago I despaired at seeing a band so great play to 15 people in the Fish Tank (Durham) but now they are finally getting the recognition they deserve. If you want tunes that stay in your head, sussed lyrics and choruses bigger than a mighty elephant, look no further. A couple of jars with John from Wigan then off to see LAST ROUGH CAUSE who were Pop-Punk long before it meant out of tune American accents and rock school guitars. LRC’s now very sought after 7” was a cracking EP and the tracks accompanying it on 'Skins & Punks' split LP weren’t bad either, so I was really looking forward to seeing em. Sure enough the Olympia did not disappoint - or rather it did. You could put mattresses all over the walls of this place and it would still sound shit, and the turnout here was nothing short of disgraceful (about 40 people). Still good to hear 'Violent Few' etc again and lets hope they keep it going and play the toon sometime. Bumped em in the street later and they’re really good blokes; the drummer remembered me from years ago. It involved his record collection. Time to scarper! I had almost forgotten but, whilst waiting for LRC, we took in a band from Herts, CHARRED HEARTS, who gave a powerful, confident performance. I have no idea if this is a new band or an obscure KBD act who’ve just reformed but despite being my age or more (except the drummer who I think is the singer’s son, though you wouldn’t be able to tell as he clattered them like a pro) they were obviously here to entertain, the singer jumping over the barrier and handing the mic to a rather bored/confused looking YTS security type! Musically if you imagine old KBD bands like BLEACH BOYS with modern day heavy production. Had to square up with Tony (top man!) from the stalls which meant I missed most of KUNT & THE GANG but he went down a storm anyway. If you’ve seen him you’ll know exactly what to expect – depraved lyrics set to innocent sounding 80’s chart music. His videos are legendary (you MUST check out his My Space site). Songs include 'Fred and Rose' (“I’d murder a lodger for you”), 'Men With Beards' (“…what are they hiding, have they buried a body next to a railway siding”) and the very topical 'Michael Jackson Tribute' (“he was born black, he died white, and in the middle he fiddled with kids”) – the latter caused absolute riots on You Tube because genuine fans of the Paedo of Pop have been searching for their hero only to find THAT!! THE STUPIDS sounded the same as ever – powerful early 80s US influenced HC (but not nearly tuneful enough to hold yer attention for long) lost in the Olympia wall of echo. THE THREATS were thankfully playing the side stage at the Olympia. Like the PORK DUKES, they’re not pretty but they’re another kick in the teeth for the jaded absentees who moan that it’s all washed up heroes of yesteryear playing sluggish versions of their old stuff. Since coming back a decade ago or so, they have knocked out two powerful albums and are more powerful today than ever. Tracks from '12 Punk Moves' and 'God Is Not With Us Today' were mixed with the old classics like 'Writing On The Wall', 'Politicians And Ministers' and '1980s' and they played like a band out to make their very first impression on the world. A quick hiatus back at the B&B then I think it was back to a rescheduled CRAVATS. I loved 'Precinct' when I was a young un – in them days entertainment was walking round with a tape recorder usually blasting offensive tunes – so, as the song wasn’t peppered with expletives it musta been good – though I remember being disappointed by their LP ('XMP' excepted). I couldn’t, however, remember their most famous moment – 'Rub Me Out' (Crass Recs). No wonder. This is the song they kicked off with – an intolerable, arty jazz number. No tune or direction, it’s only purpose to irritate, although the band deserve kudos for suffering for their art, the sax player wearing an old East German army coat (that probably hadn’t seen the light of day since 1980) in the excruciating heat. That’s about as much as I could bear so it was off to my natural habitat, the bar. By now depression was setting in. The bar was half empty, and I ended up in a debate about USHC with Hebby (t-shirt magnate) and Shaun from VOORHEES. I still ended up none the wiser as to what constitutes good HC or bad HC (to me “It’s all a noise Alan”) and I thought I’d better check out KILLING JOKE in the Empress. Most of the remaining punters obviously had the same idea. I only ever liked about three songs by em ('Wardance', 'Psyche', and 'Complications') but I’d heard they were some act live. Well stood at the back, it just seemed like a wall of echo with a deranged Michael Jackson lookalike walking back and forwards shouting “Change!”. That will probably knark diehards like ebay Lee, but unless a band has lots of good tunes that is probably as far as I delve at this stage of proceedings, so back to the bar and they’re still on about bands who go “shout shout shout”… and we’re just about the only ones left in there. Doom, gloom. I had promised to help load out for John (Overground) after the gig, but being the only person left in the stalls area I was no doubt suspected of being a wrong un and ushered out of the building, leaving a less than amused John when the gig finished. Mondays in Blackpool are always suitably bleak. It pisses down, you’re kicked out of the B&B at 10am and the bus doesn’t come till 3pm. But we will be back next year with a vengeance (and hopefully not toothache). It remains the greatest holiday on earth. Next year tips – scrap the big stage in the Olympia (keep the small one), and turn it over to the art show, and possibly a Punk Rock market/car boot sale where ordinary Punkers can pay a small amount for a small stall for a day to sell their cast offs, records, CDs etc. Use the Pavillion for bands instead.

Trev Howarth (Myspace)

Show Time!

THE FREEZE - SHORTBUS WINDOW LICKERS - DEFCON ZERO - THE RUINED, Camden Underworld, London, UK 4th August 2009
As I sat in the World’s End pub in Camden sipping my first pint of Guinness on British soil for a year, I had chance to reflect on what brought me here.
Y’see, I’d been back in the UK for about 36 hours when I made the trip to London. My journey from my New Zealand home to my Mum’s place had taken longer than that. I was heavily jet-lagged and struggling with the humidity of London after the relative open (and harsh) New Zealand winter that I had left behind. I still had two hours before the doors opened and just hoped that I would not have to leave the venue half-way through THE FREEZE’s set to catch the last train home.
As I found a second wind with a second pint of Guinness, I got to thinking about how I discovered THE FREEZE. My thoughts went back to the flat Rikki of Red Flag 77 had on Wherstead Road in Ipswich some 20 years previous. We’d been on one of our then frequent lunchtime drinking sessions before crashing at Rik’s for a blitz of Punk Rock tuneage. As I sat there nursing another can of Export-strength beer, Rikki put on a record called ‘Land Of The Lost’ by some band I had never heard of. These wild harmonic notes made me pause my drinking before the band burst in with a fury that was jaw-dropping. And so began ‘American Town’, the opening track on the album.
Since that day, I’ve become an avid FREEZE addict. I’ve interviewed Clif Hanger twice and spent many hours with the stereo cranked listening to the band’s output. So, with a wait of 20 years, I finally found myself a few hours away from seeing the band. Suddenly a 36-hour trip and all the jetlag seemed trivial.
Unfortunately, I still believed the Underworld worked on the time-schedule that it adhered to before I left - ie: first band on at 8pm. By the time I wandered down, it appeared that THE RUINED (who I had spoken to in the bar and were decent blokes all round) had already played. That was a real pisser as I really enjoyed the band’s stuff on its split EP with Destructors 666.
DEFCON ZERO had only just started when I arrived. The band played a fast, tough Hardcore Punk sound, decidedly UK82 influenced, a bit rough around the edges and totally in your face. I kept thinking of a mix of CHAOS UK and the VARUKERS. Song titles are lost already but I remember a damning condemnation of the British National Party’s Nick Griffin and one about Rats. The band would probably have been more effective had it played a pub’s back room or a squat rather than the barely ¼ full Underworld.
The oddly named SHORTBUS WINDOW LICKERS was next up, keeping things entrenched in a UK82 British feel but with a hard-hitting Hardcore bite, somewhere between POISON IDEA and MOTORHEAD. They too had a song about the slime that is the BNP - possibly tied up with the word cunt!! Haha!! Can’t recall much more about them bar the fact that the singer had a fascination with blow jobs and, I think, there was a song about zombies!! The whole band was tight, powerful and equally in your face as DEFCON ZERO. Have to say though, both bands seemed rather odd choices for FREEZE support slots.
Just as I first heard ‘American Town’ at Rikki’s flat all those years ago, so it was the same song that opened THE FREEZE’s set. It was quite a cathartic moment no doubt amplified by my still slightly otherworldly state! Besides Clif on vocals, the band featured two guitarists, one of which I am sure WAS Bill Close. The set was a virtual all you wanna hear of the band’s back catalogue with a surprising amount lifted from the ‘One False Move’ album. Highlights? So many but those that stand out include ‘Warped Confessional’, ‘Mental Defective’, ‘Freakshow’ ‘Trouble If You Hide’, ‘False Messiah’ and a show-stealing blaze through ‘Terminal’. I was surprised to hear ‘This Is Boston... Not LA’ but man, it was welcome and seemingly faster than the recorded version. The band itself was tight, commanding the front of the stage and certainly seemed to know each other musically. Clif was very visual in a theatrical sense - more so than I expected in fact. More than once he brought to mind Biafra’s deranged stage antics during his DEAD KENNEDYS peak. Not sure if it was Clif’s hearing that was playing tricks, but more than once he walked over to one of the guitar cabinets and stuck his head right in front of it. A set that lasted an hour finished with the obligatory ‘Broken Bones’ the intensity of which actually sent a shiver down my spine. The last band to do that? IGGY AND THE STOOGES in Sydney.
The turn out was quite disappointing though. I thought the place would be at least 75% full. It actually appeared to be less than half.
And so I made my way back to Liverpool St to face my final task: staying awake on the train after four pints of Guinness was piled onto my already jaded state! The last thing I wanted was to fall asleep on the train and end up in Norwich. Mercifully, those ringing chords of ‘American Town’ kept reverberating in my ears. A Contract High indeed.

Obituary - Brendan Mullen

On Monday 12th October 2009, Brendan Mullen, founder of the legendary Hollywood Punk club The Masque, died at Ventura County Medical Centre. His death was the result of a massive stroke he suffered two days earlier. He was with his partner of 16 years, Kateri Butler, with whom he was travelling through Santa Barbara and Ventura in celebration of his 60th birthday. In a statement from Butler, Mullen is said to have shown no indication that he was a likely stroke victim.
The importance of The Masque in terms of Punk’s own history cannot be understated. It acted as the lynchpin for the early Los Angeles Punk scene and Mullen himself is often credited as being the first promoter of Punk Rock in Hollywood.
Mullen was born in Paisley, Scotland on 9th October 1949 and grew up in Manchester, England prior to his move to America. In his photo book, Live at the Masque: Nightmare in Punk Alley, he describes himself as a, "dirty, hapless schmuck from Scotland" who was looking for a place to live and bang his drums (Mullen played drums in his own Punk-lounge act, the SATINTONES.). In June 1977 he, "tumbled into the basement of the Hollywood Center Building." This space became The Masque.
The Masque was a 10,000-foot space located behind the Pussycat adult theatre on Hollywood Boulevard. Initially, Mullen rented out the space he didn’t use as a rehearsal room, “at such rock-bottom monthly prices, even Punk bands could afford them. Within a month or so, the basement morphed into a performance space.” On 18th August 1977, The Masque staged its first show hosting both THE SKULLS and THE CONTROLLERS.
From there, the club became a haven for those alienated from the mainstream, frustrated by regularity and addicted to the pulsating and assaultive sounds of the new beat that we know as Punk Rock. Regularly bands as infamous as THE GERMS, THE WEIRDOS, THE DILS and THE SCREAMERS would perform their earliest shows at the club. The club became the pantheon of Los Angeles Punk as X, THE DICKIES, THE GO-GOS, THE BAGS, THE FLESHEATERS and more all made the club their spiritual home. Mullen usually hosted the events (which went onto include San Fran Punks DEAD KENNEDYS and AVENGERS and fledgling performances by USHC legends BLACK FLAG) and is often described as both charming and acerbic.
As with every club since, The Masque soon came to the attention of police, fire and licensing officials while also facing hostilities from local businesses. Such scrutiny lead the club to closing and reopening on several occasions. It even moved to another space on Santa Monica Boulevard before closing its doors for good in 1979.
After the closure of The Masque, Mullen fell on hard times finding himself broke and homeless after a spell as an independent Punk Rock promoter. This spell of inactivity was to end in 1981 with a residency at the Club Lingerie.
Situated on Sunset Boulevard, Club Lingerie provided an outlet for Mullen’s skills for over a decade. He was the club’s in-house booker arranging eclectic shows ranging from R&B, Punk, Pop, Jazz and, most significantly, Hip-Hop.
While Mullen will first and foremost be credited with ties to Punk Rock, it should also be noted that he lays claim to have staged Southern California’s, “first full-spectrum, New York-style Hip-Hop event including MCs, DJs, graffiti writers, and b-boy breakers, all of ‘em flown out specifically from the South Bronx.” The bill included Grandmixer D.ST, Afrika Islam, Crazy Legs and others. In attendance was 17-year-old Andre Williams who had slipped past security. Today, Williams is more widely known as one Dr. Dre.
While booking at Club Lingerie, Mullen simultaneously booked at the Variety Arts Center during the late 80s and aided Johnny Depp and his partners in opening the Viper Room in 1993.
In recent years, Mullen has vigorously chronicled the history of L.A. Punk, which in turn documented his own role in the scene. These books, which include We Got the Neutron Bomb: The Untold Story of L.A. Punk (2001, with Marc Spitz), Lexicon Devil: The Fast Times and Short Life of Darby Crash and the Germs (2002, with Don Bolles and Adam Parfrey), and the previously mentioned photo history Live at the Masque: Nightmare in Punk Alley (2007), have brought Mullen to the attention of a whole new generation of Punks eager for first-hand knowledge on this influential and pivotal era. He also authored the JANE’S ADDICTION oral history Whores (2005). For the last year prior to his passing, he had been working with Red Hot Chili Peppers on a book about the band’s career, according to the band’s bassist, Flea.
In addition to Butler, Mullen is survived by three sisters: Pauline Mullen, Una Earley and Nuala Rainford.

Obituary - Jim Carroll

On Friday 11th September 2009, Jim Carroll, died aged 60. His ex-wife Rosemary states the cause of death was a heart attack suffered at his Manhattan home. According to Carroll’s website, Catholicboy.com, he was at his desk working at the time of death. Carroll was famed for his Basketball Diaries that chronicle his wild youth, and for fronting THE JIM CARROLL BAND that was made famous by the classic ‘People Who Died’.
Born on 1st August 1949 as the son of a bar owner, James Dennis Carroll spent his childhood in Manhattan’s Lower East Side attending Roman Catholic Schools (something he would touch on with future lyrics). It was following a move to Inwood at the northern end of Manhattan that Carroll won a basketball scholarship at Trinity - an elite private school on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.
It was at Trinity that his love affair with writing began as he spent time at St. Mark’s Poetry Project in the East Village, rubbing shoulders with the likes of Allen Ginsberg and William Burroughs, while simultaneously acquiring the status of teenage basketball star. It was here that he started writing his diaries, the diaries that became the infamous Basketball Diaries.
His life at this stage mixed sport with poetry and an (un)healthy appetite for drugs. The diaries begin laden with innocence and hope as Carroll writes of feeling enthused via his first day in an organized basketball league. They culminate with the degrading, downbeat confession of being, “Totally zonked, and all the dope scraped or sniffed clean from the tiny cellophane bags. I can see the Cloisters with its million in medieval art out the bedroom window. I got to go in and puke. I just want to be pure,” as Carroll has been reduced to a Times Square hustling junkie.
The diaries were not published until 1978 by which time his writing had already won Carroll cult status, including a 1967 self-published pamphlet of poems entitled Organic Trains and a successor 4 Ups And 1 Down from 1970. 1973’s Living At The Movies was issued by a mainstream publisher, won critical acclaim and a wider audience. The diaries were reissued in 1980 followed by a film in 1995 with Leonardo DeCaprio playing Carroll’s part.
During the early 70s, Carroll continued with his diaries, eventually seeing the light as The Basketball Diaries’ follow-up, Forced Entries: The Downtown Diaries, 1971-1973. This was an equally frenetic period for Carroll. He had become a regular on the Downtown Poetry Scene with the likes of Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac hailing him as “the new voice”. He contributed dialogue to some of Andy Warhol’s films after finding his way into Warhol’s Factory after a brief stint at Columbia University. It was during this period that he lived with both Patti Smith and photographer Robert Mapplethorpe; the former proving pivotal to his musical future.
To escape the drugs, Carroll had to escape New York and fled to Bolinas, a small artistic community north of San Francisco where he met his future wife - Rosemary Klemfuss in 1978. The marriage would end in divorce.
It was in the late 70s that Carroll’s musical legacy ignited in a spontaneous fireball as Patti Smith brought him on-stage to deliver some of his poetry as the Patti Smith Band provided the backing soundtrack. Encouraged by the response Carroll formed his own band, The Jim Carroll Band. In even more fortuitous circumstances, the band caught the attention of one Keith Richards (yep, he of the Rolling Stones) who arranged a three-album deal with Atlantic Records.
The debut album, 1980’s ‘Catholic Boy’ is widely considered a classic while the track, ‘People Who Died’ - a rollicking, energised litany of Carroll’s previous friends and acquaintances who have passed on in varying circumstances - enjoyed radio success and even appeared on the soundtrack of Steven Spielberg’s blockbuster, ‘E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial’, appearing in the film’s opening scene. The following albums - ‘Dry Dreams’ (1982) and ‘I Write Your Name’ (1984) - while being solid failed to match the Punk Rock ‘n’ Roll cool of the debut.
Although Carroll took a break from being actively involved in music until the release of ‘Pools Of Mercury’ some 14 years later in 1998, he remained a cult industry figure. You could find his lyrics on Blue Oyster Cult and Boz Scaggs albums and find him performing live with Ray Manzarek (formerly of The Doors) as part of a spoken word act. More recently his influence can be seen in the likes of Pearl Jam that recorded a version of ‘Catholic Boy’ with Carroll. More significantly, Rancid used his lyrics on ‘Junky Man’ and had Carroll recite the spoken word section of the song. Furthering his legacy has been Marilyn Manson and Drive By Truckers which have both recorded versions of his songs.
Carroll also published several further poetry collections: The Book of Nods (1986), Fear of Dreaming (1993) and Void of Course: Poems 1994-1997 (1998) and has released several spoken-word albums. Although having been out of the public eye for several years, it is reported that he had been working on a new novel for sometime - presumably the work he was pursuing at the time of the heart attack.
Carroll is survived by his brother Tom.

Personally, Carroll’s legacy has been primarily through music and his diaries. All three original albums deserve a listen but the debut album, ‘Catholic Boy’, stands testament to near-perfect Punk-tinged rock ‘n’ roll; it’s sneering, arrogant, confident and has a natural fluidity that only the best can match. Both The Basketball Diaries and The Downtown Diaries make rivetting reading, so much so that for a latter issue of Scanner, I made serious attempts at contacting Carroll for an interview. I got close but not quite close enough.

Show Time!

FLIPPER - MOUNTAINEATER
San Francisco Bath House, Wellington, New Zealand, 18th June 2009
While waiting for the first band to start playing, I was talking to a long-time FLIPPER fan who expressed surprise that the audience being made up of many in their twenties and possibly younger rather than the over thirties. I'm not sure what I make of that myself. It's been quite some time since the days when Kurt Cobain donned a FLIPPER T-shirt. Perhaps FLIPPER is a prime example of a band gaining a live audience miles from their home country due to the mp3 buying/downloading crowd.
First up were Dunedin trio MOUNTAINEATER who made me ponder what early GORDONS shows were like. MOUNTAINEATER had a HUGE wall of noise bringing the previously mentioned band and SPACEMEN 3 to mind. The sparsely used vocals were not unlike THE CURE's Robert Smith in his prime. They played about six songs.
FLIPPER came out and Bruce Loose started talking about his band not being serious rock unlike the previous group and finding himself trapped in a cage again. Ted Falconi stood pretty much in the same place all night while strumming his guitar. The bass player and frontman moved around a lot but it's like contrasting ADD kid on speed and caffiene with a turtle. Bruce had to check his bass player's glossary (set list) a few times. Into the band's second song he states, "Fuck all those heavy stoner bands (a reference to support band Mountaineater's sound perhaps?). Acid Punk is where it's at. We're the original Acid Punk band." Songs like personal favourite ‘Life’ are played as are newer less engaging tracks. It's difficult to tell if Bruce is genuinely annoyed at the kid knocking the monitor orwhether it's part of the band's confrontational approach. I find myself thinking about live footage of THE BIRTHDAY PARTY I saw a good many years back as there's a similar dramatic aspect. Bruce claims to have lost his voice and asks for a couple of audience members to sing ‘Sex Bomb Baby’ as he straps on a bass. Two young guys are happy to oblige. No encore is played.
Chris (Small Takeover)

The New Blog

So I've decided to go with a seperate Blog. The one on the main Scanner site was basically crap. I had hassles uploading photos, formatting text and using sub-catagories. Is this gonna be any different?? Time will tell

For older posts including Obituaries, Show Time reviews and more, hit HERE

Enjoy
Steve S