NOTHING HERE NOW BUT THE RECORDINGS

Ten industrial albums YOU must own.

PART 2: Mark Stewart and The Maffia – As The Veneer of Democracy Starts To Fade (Mute, 1985)

This is a bit cheeky because I’ve already held forth on this album and Mark Stewart’s career at length in my piece The First Taste of Hope is Fear.

To that, I would add two things. Firstly this is one of the foundation stones of the cross over between industrial and dub. Everyone using noise in dance music owes a debt to Mark Stewart.

Secondly, I am amazed that people aren’t constantly up in arms, emailing me to say “WHAT, JOHN? You mean this is an album featuing all the same musicians as those great Grandmaster Flash tracks on Sugar Hill? With topnotch ranter Mark Stewart? Produced by Adrian Sherwood at the peak of his powers? Why didn’t you tell me about this before?”

Is it just me, or is that just about one of the best collaborations in music – EVER?

2ND CHOICE: Mark Stewart (Mute, 1987) 

AKA The Album with no title. I’ve got into real trouble for saying this is my second favourite. All the die-hard fans are adamant that the first LP “Learning To Cope With Cowardice” is either the best or at least as good as “Veneer”. But I still don’t agree!

Also thoroughly recommended is the compilation of early Tackhead twelves: “Tackhead Tape Time”. Same musicians as “Veneer” and similar dystopian Burroughs-influenced vibe.

AVOID: 

It’s all good, but I find Metatron and Control Data a bit patchy.

FURTHER INFORMATION

Well, you’ll have to read the article linked above, which I wrote because there really wasn’t much else. The links page has details of the other stuff I found. It’s worth bearing in mind that the piece needs a few corrections (like, I think I was wrong about the Roots Radics).

none dare call it conspiracy

On a not entirely unrelated note, I keep meaning to re-read The Conspiracy of Good Taste by Stefan Szczelkun (published by WORKING PRESS 1993 9.95 pounds sterling. ISBN 1 870736 69 9)

I think this addresses some of the pitfalls of taking on society’s view of what consitutes “good taste” which may or may not translate into “good writing” or “good production values”. Essentially, the edges get chopped off everything to make it neat and tidy and consumable by “cultured” middle class types.

There are some great sections in the book about the role of middle class people acting as curators of folk music and (intentionally or not) that leading to the subject matter being curtailed. Songs about fucking didn’t get archived…

This definitely ties into the paternalistic aspects of reggae fans who are stuck in the 1970s (or, increasingly, the 1960s, even!) and have as, as Penny Reel has so eloquently put it, an attitude to current jamaican musicians akin to a parent or teacher who has just discovered that a child has misbehaved. (Actually Penny put it much better than that, but I can’t find the quote now).

not bad meaning bad….

“…me have me herbs and me matches and skin
sometimes guinness or sometimes gin
bong bong bong bong bong biddly biddly biddly dong ding…”

I think we need to make some distinctions in this bad/good writing discussion.

You could probably draw one of those matrix things, with two axes – one for technique and one for “edge” or whatever you want to call it.

So, to map out the extremes

1) Lots of technique but no edge: Really “well” written stuff that you fall asleep reading because it’s so dull. Musical equivalent, probably Robson and Jerome or some dull AOR business.

2) Lots of edge by no technique: Rambling writing which isn’t structured or spelt well but it actually ABOUT something – where the personality and energy comes through regardless. The musical equivalent of this is I guess what punk was supposed to be. But also anything where people are just trying to figure out how the equipment works and making a joyful racket.

3) Lots of technique and edge – writing that continually knocks you over… (?) musical equivalent – NERD? Public Enemy? King Tubby?

4) No technique and no edge – rambling cobblers which isn’t about anything discernable and is clearly by someone who either isn’t interesting or interested. Musical equivalent: some of the dodgy “experimental” cassettes I used to get sent in the 90s.

Now clearly most people have a bit of both, but I think I’d mostly prefer edge over technique. I’d rather listen to DJ Scud than some plodding AOR nonsense which is “well” produced and written by people who can play their instruments “well”.

That said, I think Matt is quite right when he talks about the exoticism thing. This is people fetishing the lack of production values as a good thing in and of itself. For example it’s clearly true that a lot of great reggae has been made in situations of economic depravation, often not on the best equipment. But the musicians were generally top notch and Coxsone or whoever made sure that it sounded the best it could. Fair enough. But you still get people obsessing on this and the fact that Coxsone presses up his sevens on really crappy vinyl… holding aloft their crackly discs as if they were religious artifacts.

It also has to be said that grimy production values are in some way an assault on the whole glossy magazine shop window stick thin model…. Spectacle. Making stuff sound “bad” has a long history (at least back to fuzzy guitars?).

The beauty in punks “ugliness” was a reaction to the ugliness of the mainstream’s “beauty”.

fiyah BUN!!!

“how come i haven’t amounted to anything, YOU PRICK, i was teaching myself something, i was REWIRING MY FUCKING BRAIN, deconditioning myself…”

Luka spits pure wisdom and venom. At the same time! So mote it be, brother.

Incidentally, I NEVER take anything personally these days.

Well, unless it’s directly in my face and there can be no doubt that it is aimed at me exclusively. And then I usually think it’s the other guy’s problem.

When you’ve had people ranting at you, trying to undermine your whole BEING, or when you’ve been standing in front of a room of 40 people who have ALL been hostile, many of whom are shouting at you, it’s all water off a duck’s back, really. 🙂

The point I guess I was making is that it’s GOOD that I’ve come across a bunch of people who do great blogs.

People who have their own voice, whether that’s quiet or loud, considered or inspired (or combinations of all that or whatever).

industrial strength

There is going to be more in that Industrial Top Ten though (whether you like it or not!).

I’ve been battling with tiredness and dehydrated eyes recently and the better half has to work in the evenings sometimes so it’s a bit out of order to be there on the computer mucking about with jpegs of record covers when she has to edit some big document and she’s already had a knackering day looking after the daughter.

I’ve been listening to some of the records again, though, and there’s been some surprises (more of which later). My memory of some of those groups is very different from what they actually sound like…

it’s all good

What I meant, my man, by good writing was stuff that grips you. So really, the content, not the “style”. Or possibly the style as well, but not in the way your English teacher meant it. It doesn’t have to be well structured and grammer-ed, just… readable, energetic, opinionated, rude, over the top, mental, interesting, funny, thought-provoking.

Fact is, there are a load of blogs out there that don’t seem to be about anything, by people who don’t seem very interesting.

Gyrus-scopic

OK, so this seems to be “what John gets up to whilst drunk” week! I am slightly concerned, but also very excited that Gyrus has started a blog. On the one hand this is fantastic because the G-man has been DOING things for years and years and years and so I have no doubt that his blog will be excellent.

However, I do need to watch myself a little when the lager frenzy has taken hold (I bullied him into it whilst drunk! I really laid into his excellent site! I am…. the bad man). Next time it could be you…

Some good bits already about the connections back to zine culture and I do think that people who have gone through the discipline of doing small press publications have a leg up with this stuff because they are used to be being focussed and disciplined about it. (which sounds very stern, no?).

However it CAN also be good to get a load of stuff thrown up there if people have the interests and personalities to carry it off (i.e. Luka over at Heronbone and many others I’ve linked to in the past) or journos like Penman and Reynolds who obviously use their blogs as an escape from having their work hacked about by sub-editors.

—– R I D D I M —–

RIDDIM!

LAUNCH NIGHT AND CARNIVAL WARM-UP

August 23rd 8pm till late.
£3 entry
The Windmill, Blenheim Gardens, off Brixton Hill

FEATURING:

LIVE:

Dub Dadda (Zion Train / Abassi Sound System / Nucleus Roots)
debut solo appearance in London!

GUEST DJ:

John Eden (Shake The Foundations)

RESIDENT DJs:

Dubversion (Peoples Republic Of Disco / Dubhammer Sound System)

DJ Badly (On-U Sound / Nucleus Roots)

Three years after the Dubhammer Sound System staged its last event at the Windmill, some of the same crew return with RIDDIM!, a new bi-monthly roots & future night.

Sticking with the Dubhammer ethos that reggae is a very broad church, RIDDIM! will offer roots rock reggae, ska, dancehall, digi-dub and anything else that’s riddim-driven.

With Dubversion and DJ Badly as residents, RIDDIM! will be calling on guests DJs and artists from the UK roots scene and beyond to put in an appearance in the coming months.

contact Lee Fisher or Alex Holland on 020 7582 5532

Or email “riddim at peoplesrepublicofdis dot co dot uk”