DAY THE COUNTRY DIED: A HISTORY OF ANARCHO PUNK 1980-1984 - Ian Glasper (480 pages, Cherry Red)
This is the second in Glasper’s trilogy of books about 80s UK Punk and, where the first book detailed the No Future, boots and braces brigade, this - as the title states - features bands that embodied liberty, revolution and a desire for change. These bands formed their own labels rather than attempting to sign to a label; these bands craved change rather than merely singing about it; these bands went out and got what they wanted.
Little in the way of aesthetics has changed. As with the first book, the bands are listed in geographical regions with the more important bands getting the bigger page count. Also mirroring the first book is the selected discographies and suggested starting points for the curious.
The first thing that is noticeable about every aspect of the book is the spectre of CRASS. Just about every band in this book either formed after seeing CRASS, or hearing ‘Feeding Of The 5,000’, or at the very least having their whole world and perspective turned upside down by the political acerbity of CRASS. While Burning Britain had no single defining act that galvanised the genre, CRASS undoubtedly became Anarcho figureheads, leading a charge for independence, protest and clearly marking your territory.
The other main difference between the bands in this book and those in Burning Britain is their mind set. While many bands in Burning Britain sort managers and labels and focused on boozing, nihilism and basic adrenalin, the bands in this book did literally want to detach themselves from the music industry and create a viable alternative. The lyrics and ideas reflected a deeper unrest, much of it pointed at pacifism, animal rights and vegetarianism, the nuclear threat, capitalism and complete and utter embitterment of a Thatcher-led society. This polemic is reinforced when reading much of the interview material in the book. The likes of Dick Lucas (SUBHUMANS), Penny Rimbaud (CRASS), Mark Wilson (THE MOB), Deek (OI POLLOI), Tez Turner (INSTIGATORS/XPOZEZ), Boff (CHUMBAWAMBA) and a myriad of others certainly make much more pointed comments than the likes of EXPLOITED, GONADS and ANWL.
That’s not to say that this is all dour politics - far from it! There are more stories of extreme violence, decadence, drug and alcohol abuse, good times and living a life genuinely on the edge that many of those in Burning Britain could never aspire to. What this book does hammer home, and it’s something that is absent in today’s sanitised Punk Rock environs, is just how violent those Anarcho shows were thanks to the mindless thuggery of too many mindless, show-crashing skinheads.
Like the first book, Glasper makes the bands accessible and the enthusiasm in his writing is equally evident. There are plenty of pics filling out the pages too, many of them from a live environment. Oddly, there is no section on POISON GIRLS, a band that undoubtedly suited the subject matter, had close ties initially to CRASS and was active within the time frame.
The additional chapters here feature complete discographies of the main Anarcho record labels (Crass, Bluurg, Mortarhate, Spiderleg etc) plus a listing of associated websites, including political/ radical sites alongside the bands.
The greatest compliment I can pay a book of this nature - as with the first volume - is whether it taught me anything that I didn’t already know. Well, this sure did! A lot of the bands in this book I was already familiar with, possessed their records and had viewed live but the wealth of information contained here really is a testament to Glasper’s research.
The third and final chapter will focus on UK Hardcore; it will have a lot to do to live up to the strength of Day The Country Died.