‘After America’ reviews

Oh yes…and this from Brainwashed; “With very few exceptions, Simon excels at just about everything he tries..”

Bourbonese Qualk Press roundup – March 2015

Lots of new exposure for the Mannequin records CD+2 X LP ‘Bourbonese Qualk 1983-1987’ project and the ‘Lies’ 12″ – from a strange mix of DJ magazine and new ‘industrial’ press…

Resident Advisor

Sentirescoltare (Italian)

“Colonna sonora perfetta della decadenza urbana, tra incubi distopici e sogni libertari, oggi come allora, i Bourbonese Qualk ci mostrano, da un passato mai dimenticato, lo spirito e le forme possibili della resistenza del futuro.”

Igloo Magazine (English)

“Bourbonese Qualk were as difficult as their name suggests: abrasive, uncompromising, highly conceptual and devoted to specific ideals. As one of the early original industrial bands from the UK emerging in the tumultuous wasteland of Thatcher’s England, BQ would influence many other bands to follow”

DJ Broadcast (Dutch)

Hartzine (French)

“…Perfide Albion”

Juno (english)

““God With Us” which originates from their 1983 LP Laughing Afternoon and suggests fragments of their musical legacy has spread deep into the DNA of modern electronic music.”

Qualkology pt1. Vinyl re-release

Bourbonese Qualk 1983-1986

It’s taken a while but, the first of a series of official re-releases of Bourbonese Qualk archive material comes out in a few weeks on the Berlin based Mannequin Label. ‘Bourbonese Qualk 1983-1986’ not surprisingly, is a compilation of tracks taken from the first five albums during the early Crab/Stanza/Gilbert period of 1983-86 and will be available as a Vinyl LP and CD.

Track listing is as follows:

Bourbonese Qualk 1983-1986

• 1. ‘Dream Decade’ Originally released in 1987 on the ‘Bourbonese Qualk’ LP
• 2. ‘Born Left Hearted’ Originally released in 1986 on the ‘Preparing for Power’ LP
• 3. ‘Pogrom ‘ Originally released in 1986 on the ‘The Spike’ LP
• 4. ‘Soft City’ Originally released in 1986 on the ‘Preparing for Power’ LP
  5. ‘Headstop’ Originally released in 1984 on the ‘Hope’ LP
• 6. ‘Gag’ Originally released in 1984 on the ‘Hope’ LP
• 7. ‘Outcry’ Originally released in 1986 on the ‘Preparing for Power’ LP
• 8. ‘Return To Order’ Originally released on the ‘Preparing for Power’ LP 1986
• 9. ‘Confrontation’ Originally released in 1986 on the ‘Preparing for Power’ LP
• 10. ‘In-flux’ Originally released in 1986 on the ‘The Spike’ LP
• 11. ‘Qualk Street’ Originally released in 1983 on the ‘Laughing Afternoon’ LP
• 12. ‘Backlash’ Originally released in 1986 on the ‘Preparing for Power’ LP
• 13. ‘Sweat it 0ut’ Originally released in 1987 on the ‘Bourbonese Qualk’ LP New
• 14. ‘There is No Night’ Originally released in 1984 on the ‘Hope’ LP
• 15. ‘God With Us’ Originally released in 1983 on the ‘Laughing Afternoon’ LP
• 16. ‘Blood Orange Bargain Day’ Originally released in 1983 on the ‘Laughing Afternoon’ LP
• 17. ‘Shutdown’ Originally released in 1986 on the ‘The Spike’ LP
• 18. ‘Invocation’ Originally released in 1984 on the ‘Hope’ LP
• 19. ‘To Hell With The Consequences’ Originally released in 1983 on the ‘Laughing Afternoon’
• 20. ‘Erector’ Originally released on the ‘Hope’ LP
• 21. ‘Black Madonna’ Originally released in 1984 on the ‘Hope’ LP
• 22. ‘Suburb City’ Originally released on the ‘The Spike’ LP
• 23. ‘Workover’ Originally released in 1987 on the ‘Bourbonese Qualk’ LP
• 24. ‘Deadbeat’ Originally released in 1986 on the ‘The Spike’ LP
• 25. ‘Insurrection’ Originally released in 1986 on the ‘Preparing for Power’ LP
• 26. ‘This Is The Enemy’ Originally released in 1987 on the ‘Bourbonese Qualk’ LP

The tracks were chosen by Alessandro at Mannequin to focus, I think, on the more electro-minimal, verging on ‘pop’ style. Not the choice I would have made! – I find my early, er, singing, too awkward and painful to listen to, but, it does seem to be what BQ have become ‘known for’ so who am I to argue?

You can get it here:

http://www.mannequinrecords.com/

watch this space [   ] for more re-release news.

 

That Muslimgauze book.

 

Ibrahim’s book on Muslimgauze ‘Chasing the Shadow of Bryn jones’ has been out for some time now but I thought I’d give it a little extra publicity boost. Not that anyone I know could afford to buy it – if you are really keen you can buy a whole box set of vinyl and book from VOD for 219,99 Euro. As I may have mentioned before, I don’t get this vinyl collecting thing (or collecting anything come to that) so such behaviour is beyond me.

I was asked to creatively direct the project after the project almost collapsed when the original designer suffered a near-fatal cycle accident and I suppose because I new Bryn well from the Recloose days – we released a number of his works and in effect launched his ‘career’; something for which he was eternally unthankful.

The book is a plush affair beautifully printed and laid out by designer Eric Kessel using original and rare material. ‘Chasing the SHadow’  goes into obsessive detail on the Muslimgauze subject – basically Bryn didn’t do anything but spend time in a local recording studio releasing record after record…which doesn’t make for exciting reading unless you are an MG devotee. I’m not totally convinced that his work deserves such lengthy scrutiny but it does hold together as a ‘total object’ and as such is a good testament to Bryn’s life and work.

http://chasingtheshadow.org/

http://www.vinyl-on-demand.com/

 

Thatcher on Acid. My part in her downfall.

With the current beatification and media frenzy over the iron lady reaching Thatchuration point (I’ve been waiting for years to use that one) I thought it would be a good time to publish my own tale of direct disrespect of the Milk Snatcher. I’m being purposefully vague about the details to avoid self-incrimination but apart from that this is a factual account.

The new ‘Police Air Force’

How  the UK’s new Police Chief is promoting the civil use of drones amid pan-European calls for UAV liberalisation.

This month sees the launch of the National Police Air Service (NPAS) a new cross-boundary cost-saving venture that joins all of the UK’s regional police air capabilities into one umbrella organisation – in effect a new national police air force. The objective of the NPAS is to allow faster, cheaper and more efficient coordinated helicopter response across the country

Memories of Lol

Lol Coxhill (19 September 1932 – 10 July 2012)

The Recedents Live at the Red Rose, London Feb 6th 2007

In 1984 I attempted to release the first album by Lol Coxhill’s trio ‘The Recedents’* on our Recloose Organisation label. Unfortunately all of the global distributors absolutely point-blank refused to take the LP claiming that even by Recloose standards this was strong meat i.e. no one but the terminally obscure or criminally insane would think of buying such a product. So, to my eternal regret I shelved the project.

Kif Higgins: August 23, 1957 – May 19, 2012

With empire came sugar and with sugar came slaves. Slaves that made the sugar (African) and slaves that brought it to England and processed it (English, Irish, Welsh and Scots). Those that exploited the labour made fortunes and built the city of Liverpool (the irony of Tate Liverpool).

Bourbonese Qualk Peel Session 1987

So after a lengthy campaign of pestering, John Peel finally allowed us to record a session for his show in late 1986 (for the unaware; John Peel’s nightly BBC Radio programme was hugely influential to new music in the UK throughout the seventies and eighties) with the caveat that we weren’t to set foot in the BBC studios. John Walters, Peel’s producer somewhat haughtily claimed that we had such a bad reputation for anarchic trouble making, nicking stuff and smashing things up that we had to use our own equipment…which was a bit rich considering the long list of ruffians who HAD been allowed in.

Auf einen Augen-Blick

‘Auf einen Augen-Blick’ is an animated video piece using sequences of hand corrupted jpg files. If I was a bit smarter i could probably have written a script that batch processed multiple files but I found that there is something important in the laborious process of doing each frame by hand – it introduces some organic element into what should be an efficient process…I like the contradiction of using digital media in such a manual way…especially when the content is all about degradation and corruption of the media itself.

Random Rough Mix

Been a while comrades: heres some audio and video of stuff from the studio floor that wouldn’t otherwise see the light of day – edited together in a random fashion. Quite a large dose of Geoff Leigh in there from the work we did together and never quite finished…

 

All London Anarchist Revolutionary Movement

At 3pm on Sunday 15th May the All London Anarchist Revolutionary Movement (ALARM) was born amidst beery cheers in a crowded function room above the Calthorpe Arms pub. The diverse group of eighty or so Anarchist and Libertarian Socialists (including myself and the sound asleep 1.5 yr old Finn) spent the next two hours debating organisational and constitutional issues in an atmosphere more redolent of the W.I. than a revolutionary group. Representatives of London boroughs were nominated and selected, informal communication networks built and, due to the exertions of such a prolonged labour, the debate on the thorny issue of a political manifesto was postponed until next Sunday (at the Cock Tavern, Euston).

ALARM is an opportunity to focus the resurgence of interest in Anarchism that has surfaced here over the last six months. It should provide a cohesive and active confrontational force in opposition to the ongoing Tory austerity programme and the corporatist state. It should become a platform for collective action that goes beyond just ‘fucking things up’ but provide real-word examples of practical anarchism in housing, education, work, healthcare etc.

Coming soon: ALARM website, blog and contact information

Revolting Police: How will the MET respond to the cuts?

UK Police protest at pay cuts, London 2008

Police Comment: Dec 13th 2010

“…These idiots (the protesters) have all the answers, all too ready to mouth off to any passing journo or camera crew, filling our screens with pity-me martyrdom. Actually, life is totally unfair from cradle to grave… the revolting yoof do not have a constant worry about starvation, civil war, sky high infant mortality or rampant disease. Most people alive today do. So, students, if you want to go to college, get a job so you can pay your bills – just like the rest of us. If not, take out a loan and live with debt – just like the rest of us.”

Police comment on  http://inspectorgadget.wordpress.com Police blog

Police Comment. March 3rd 2011 – after  Home Secretary Theresa May announces cuts in Police spending

“We are in for a fight, this is a fight that we can win. Honesty, Integrity and Fairness is key. Miss May and Nick Herbert watch out for the shit storm that is coming your way”

Police comment on http://www.policeoracle.com Police blog

The coalition government’s agenda is  to implement their neo-con ideology as rapidly as possible; to make desperate but irreversible changes to our social infrastructure while they are still in power. Theresa May’s (UK Home secretary) latest round of public sector cuts is aimed at, your-friends-and-mine, the police. Already stretched and suffering low morale these cuts will inevitably further impact on the effectiveness of the force – an interesting scenario for the anti-cuts/anti-government movement and one that seems to deliberately catalyse opinion – reminiscent of Thatchers class-centric tactics during the 1980s. Discussions from current police forums (that wouldn’t look out of place on ‘Class War‘) debate internal tactics at combating the cuts including work-to-rule, mass-sick days, strikes and demonstrations – even suggesting jumping sides and joining the anti-cuts march on the 26th:

An Activists Guide to Police Tactics

“The people whose jobs were destroyed were in no way responsible for the excesses of the financial sector and the crisis that followed…I’m surprised the real anger hasn’t been greater than it has.”

The Governor of the Bank of England, Mervyn King March 1st 2011

“Students, activists, agitators, stoners, scratters, scrotes. You will be hit with sticks and sent home to mummy. The rule of law will prevail, order will be restored, Winston will not be shamed, my ancestors will not have died to have allowed you to bring shame on England. You will get up early, get out of your bed, seek work and contribute to the greater good.”

Post on Inspector Gadget Police blog December 2010

“Following the student protests in London on 10 November 2010, where greater numbers gathered than had been anticipated by police, and the incursion of the Conservative Party headquarters in Millbank, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson stated that ‘the game has changed’3. The character of protest is evolving in terms of: the numbers involved; spread across the country; associated sporadic violence; disruption caused; short notice or no-notice events, and swift changes in protest tactics. After a few, relatively quiet years, this is a new period of public order policing – one which is faster moving and more unpredictable. Foreseeing the character of events will prove more difficult and, in some cases, their nature and mood will only become apparent on the day.”

HMIC feb 2011 Adapting to Protest and Nurturing the British Model of Policing

Public Order tactics used by the British Police have their origin in colonial rule. From that starting point they were refined through the experience of Northern Ireland and the riots of the 1980’s to form today’s set of Quasi-military tactics where lines of police attempt to control, contain or disperse crowds of protesters. The rise of a spontaneous, decentralised protest movement and increased anger directed at the police set against a deepening economic crisis has led to calls for a tougher approach to public ‘disorder’. The demonstration against the coalition governments economic policy on March 26th will be the biggest showdown London has seen since the poll tax riot of 1989 and will be a defining moment in how the state polices mass dissent. The following is a user’s guide to understanding police tactics and capabilities culled mostly from police sources, specifically “ACPO Manual of Guidance on KEEPING THE PEACE” 2010 as well as various police blogs and forums:

Thoughts on a riot

This Thursday’s anti cuts/student fees/con-dem government demonstration (9th Dec 2010) should be an interesting triangulation of over-excited newly politicised youth, a scattering of the pissed off middle classes and us, aging anarcho-troublemakers – the aim; to close down Parliament and force a crisis for the stumbling Tory lead coalition. As usual the demonstrators will offer themselves up as cannon fodder to the well armed riot cops itching for the fight they have been waiting for:

“I wish we could beat the crap out of you with batons and snatch squads you idiots. If it was not for that human rights act crap. We should be able to quell your anachistic (sic) antics you foolish individuals!”

A serving police officer

Afterwards the rightwing press will be  full of images of youth trashing police vans and the internet full of outraged lefties complaining about police brutality. Is it really a surprise to anyone anymore that the police are brutal? They are there to protect the status quo at any cost – we are there to change it…if you think the cops are brutal, wait until they bring the military in*.

Tactics of the day should be: keep mobile and avoid kettling. Act in autonomous small informal units – select targets and move on.

Good luck.

* Referring to the Poll Tax riot of  1989 “the police had armed officers as part of the diplomatic protection force in South Africa house, but were anxious to keep them away from the trouble”

Ghosts

Towards the end of this video I am being beaten with fish by a very tall Australian woman then lifted upside down by my feet and shaken so that all the coins in my pockets fall on the floor. The location is Clapham Junction railway station in London which at the time (1986?) was partly derelict – the occasion,  a shoot for the Factory Records stars Durutti Column directed by DV8 Physical Theatre Company. Miles makes a ghostly appearance with trademark slouch at  2.46 sadly a surreal dance sequence he did was cut from the final edit.

Sunseastar “Portland symphony”

More Sunseastar video tracks from the album ‘Fjaerland’

Sunseastar ‘Saccades’

Video from the Sunseastar album ‘Fjaerland’

‘The Battle of Trafalgar’: The Poll Tax Riot 20 Years on.

From the Peasant’s Revolt to the Boston Tea Party, Taxation has historically been a defining issue in the struggle of people against imposed government. The poll tax riot of March 31 1990 was ‘the most serious public order disturbance for over a century’ and the culmination of months of anti-poll tax protests and riots in the north of England and Scotland (where the tax had been ‘tested’ on the strongly anti-Conservative Scots) .

How to down a drone…

“If you’ve done nothing wrong… you have nothing to fear.”

This year a UK Home Office backed coalition of regional Police Authorities will embark on a project to extend their national surveillance network by deploying unmanned airborne surveillance drones across the country. It’s planned that in the build up to 2012 the drones will be used to foil potential terrorist attacks, detect illegal immigration planning to cross the channel (by flying over France?), monitor anti-social behaviour and public order situations (demonstrations) and of course to gather intelligence on subversive activities.

The introduction of these drones represents a significant expansion of the surveillance state, planned and delivered by un-democratic consortium of police authorities and loosely regulated by vague and rarely tested laws. With this expansion of the surveillance state should come an equal counter-response probing the legal and practical boundaries of surveillance:

What methods can be used to disrupt or destroy drone technology?