SCUNTHORPE AREA BANDS: Part Two
ANTHEM made just two appearances following their 1984 formation: in that year’s Rock Open the band consisted of Robbo (bass/vocals), Marie Stringer (vocals), Marie’s brother Ian (guitar), and Towie on drums; Marie’s departure left the band as a trio for their next/final gig, a Band Aid Trust benefit at the Baths the following March (a week prior to that gig the band had been due to appear at Dave Lloyd’s 21st birthday party at The Crosby; however staff complaints about the ‘noise’ made by the two bands who’d played earlier that evening led to the power being cut off as Anthem were setting up). Though the band could broadly (and lazily) be defined as of the ‘anarcho-punk’ type, it may be remembered by some that their set included a rather nifty version of Fleetwood Mac’s "The Chain".
Towie > Terminus, Black Winter
Towie > Terminus, Black Winter
JESUIT’S BARK started life as Non Prink in (as far as we’re aware) 1984, when ‘scene veterans’ Singer and Finch were joined by Mik Henry and ‘Kavvy’ to re-invoke the spirit of early Cabaret Voltaire and such like (variously with bass, guitars, synths, tapes...and trumpet); at one subsequent appearance they were joined by former Harry The Spider bassist Daz Whitelaw. The name change came with their appearance in the 1985 Rock Open, with the band seemingly laid to rest in the following year’s competition: the year after that, Singer and Mik would explore vaguely similar territory in a (slightly) more traditional guitar/bass/drums combo. For now though, you have to admire a band that can come up with a number named "Tongan Chic".
Finch and Singer > Finkenstinch; Mik > Bill Dull Murder; Kavvy > Brucie’s Chin
Finch and Singer > Finkenstinch; Mik > Bill Dull Murder; Kavvy > Brucie’s Chin
DECLARATION evolved out of The Demised, who formed around autumn 1984. After several line-up changes Claire Benson (vocals), Darren ‘Daz’ Lloyd (guitar), Jonathan ‘Joff’ Hardiment (bass) and Pete Lazenby (drums; on loan from Terminus) appeared at Dave Lloyd’s 21st in March 1985 (Dave being Daz’s elder brother). Pete stayed on afterwards, Towie replacing him in Terminus following Anthem’s split. It was at this point that the band was joined by Craig Milner and Rachael Collen; the name change to Declaration was made within weeks. A lay-off of several months ensued; by the time of the band’s September re-emergence their ‘line-up’ altered with virtually every song: very few would feature all six members, whose roles can be summed up thus: Claire (vocals); Rachael (vocals); Daz (guitar/vocals/bass); Joff (bass/vocals); Craig (guitar/bass/vocals); and Pete (merely drums). There were a few more gigs (mainly sparsely-attended freebies at Jensen’s) before Joff elected to join Fatal Feudalism (later Black Winter) on vocals in March 1986; the rest of the band consequently decided to call it a day, but not before honouring a final handful of gigs to which they were committed (with Joff present, gentleman that he is). A crowd tape of one of those gigs was made available, titled News For The Deaf Dumb And Blind, following the break-up.
Daz > Murderous Musicians, Terminus (and solo); Joff > Black Winter; Pete > Johnny X, Terminus
Daz > Murderous Musicians, Terminus (and solo); Joff > Black Winter; Pete > Johnny X, Terminus
MURDEROUS MUSICIANS were, at first, the duo of Howard Foster alias The Reverend Foot and Jonny Hill alias Chairman Noose (the latter sometimes, as we have seen, also known as Sprog). The pair had put together two editions of a fanzine (Ignite) during 1984, but (following a couple of false starts) their first musical collaboration seems to have been a solitary (apparently awful) gig alongside Daz Whitelaw and Rob Delaney late that year under the name Rats The Size Of Kats. The MMs began in earnest in early 1985, a number of home-recorded tapes – and the odd video – being made over a couple of years but none offered for sale. Live appearances too were restricted (and usually with a line-up bolstered by ‘guests’); there were, however, frequent ‘statements’ issued via fanzines and the local press: many of these seemed designed to court controversy for its own sake and need not be detailed here. A tape of ‘career highlights’, First Psalm, eventually surfaced towards the end of 1986; its rough quality was improved upon by later recordings made with Daz Lloyd as a third member (following his recruitment in early 1987), though these latter too never gained any wide circulation. The band effectively ceased with Daz’s move to London around 1990; a one-off live reunion in late 1994 (without Daz) was apparently later regarded as something of a mistake.
Jonny Hill > Johnny X
Jonny Hill > Johnny X
FINKENSTINCH, self-styled exponents of ‘punktry and western’, formed around the same time as the MMs and, like them, was originally a duo; each being a former keyboard player for Harry The Spider’s Coming Out Party. Stinky Jr (now on vocals) and Finch (now guitar/vocals) debuted at the Baths’ Band Aid Trust benefit that March; the handful of gigs that followed over the ensuing year more often than not featured additional personnel: perm any one or more from Sally ("sweet harmonies and tambourine thigh-trashing"), her sister Jenny (violin and backing vocals), and Singer (formerly of One Gang Logic, concurrently of Non Prink/Jesuit’s Bark and – from March 1985 – Sally’s husband) on minimal drum kit (our original notes also mentioned a one-off appearance by one Richard Smugbastard, playing a Casio keyboard on one song at "the legendary Goole glass throwing gig"). The final Finkenstinch set was as support to The Membranes at The Hangar’s inaugural gig (February 1986), with all of the above present (except Richard).
Stinky Jr > Johnny X; Finch > Brucie’s Chin; Singer > Bill Dull Murder
Stinky Jr > Johnny X; Finch > Brucie’s Chin; Singer > Bill Dull Murder
AMERICAN RUSE took their name from a song by the MC5, of course, and the influence didn’t halt there. Formed in 1985 by vocalist/guitarists Neil Odlin and ‘Andy’ (the latter most recently of Fatal Feudalism), bassist Arif (also ex-FF) and drummer Pilly (late of Harry The Spider), ‘the Ruse’ actually relocated to Brighton not long into their existence; indeed their page at 45cat.com describes them as a Brighton band, so we’re happy to blow the gaff on them here. A few albums and a handful of singles appeared in the late ’80s/early ’90s – a couple of the 45s on the über-cool American imprint Sympathy For The Record Industry – while Pilly at least continued to potter around musically after their split, spending a while during the 1990s in the mildly notorious Ramones/ABBA crossover tribute Gabba.
TORTURE CHAMBER. As is recorded elsewhere, the second Terminus gig (at Jensen’s, October 1985) was an utter washout (so was the first actually, but for different reasons); the band split amid some acrimony, with Mark being abandoned and a string of rather scrappy gigs by the others taking place soon after under this name with Simmo (ex-Social Disease/ System’s Poison) taking lead vocals on a set of covers, largely of songs by The Clash...and Terminus! Towie soon departed to the band eventually known as Black Winter, while Dave returned to Terminus; meanwhile Chris (moving to guitar) and Simmo recruited Si Gray as bassist and knuckled down to writing some original songs. Carl North (ex-Fault 151) eventually became drummer after several gigs with various stand-ins; there were strong showings at The Hangar (supporting Blyth Power in May) and in that summer’s Rock Open, though TC had split by the end of 1986.
Chris > Ethereal Denizens
Chris > Ethereal Denizens
BLACK WINTER took a long time to settle on a name. Present throughout the band’s existence were Michael ‘Raz’ Raspin (guitar), Andy Brown (bass) and Towie (drums); their first gig (in late 1985, under the name State Deficiency) saw them augmented by Declaration’s Daz improvising lead vocals! Shortly afterwards came a change of name, to none other than Fatal Feudalism – it’s possible that it is under that name that the band is now best remembered, though they are listed here under their final handle to (at least try to) avoid confusion with the earlier Fatal Feudalism (before settling on Black Winter, by the way, they were also briefly known as Helghast). Anyhow, after that first gig Raz and Towie both took on vocal chores until they were joined by Joff as lead vocalist; shortly after this a demo (Fatal Feudalism) was issued, having been recorded ‘as live’ at The Priory. With Joff’s arrival the line-up, if not band name, remained stable until their split towards the end of the ’80s.
Towie > The Shreddies, Worlds Apart
Towie > The Shreddies, Worlds Apart
MAX were formed in 1985 as the duo of cousins Dave Crawford (guitar/vocals) and Pete Wilson (bass), and recorded a demo (Lemures) as such (with assistance from Terminus’s Mark) before being joined by guitarist James ‘Sid’ Mitchell and drummer Mick ‘Harey’ Hare the following year. After several gigs the latter – by now also of Tiger Lily Mind – departed in 1987, to be replaced by Steve Connolly. Sporadic local gigs followed with a steady flow of strong songs being added to the repertoire (alas, a second demo preserving some of these for posterity was not to be forthcoming). In early 1988 Sid and Steve struck out with a side project, Incinerator; when they quit Max later in the year in order to concentrate on that outfit full time it unfortunately sounded the death knell for Max. Dave continues to write and record in a solo capacity to this day, and in 1999 contributed to the most recent new track issued by Terminus.
Harey > Terminus; Sid and Steve > Incinerator
Harey > Terminus; Sid and Steve > Incinerator
JOHNNY X was (partially) formed by Stinky Jr (by now usually known simply as Stinky; vocals/guitar) and Steve ‘Squire’ Squire (guitar) in late 1985; their first gig was set for mid-March 1986 (at The Hangar). Very shortly before that time, however, there was still no rhythm section in place; Nic Salmon (previously referred to on these pages as J P Dada) and Pete Lazenby were recruited as stop-gap bassist and drummer respectively for that night. Only the latter elected to remain thereafter, and so Squire moved to bass and Jonny Hill (Murderous Musicians) stepped in on guitar. This line-up stuck it out until the year’s end, with gigs including Jensen’s on the Royal Wedding day in July (alongside Terminus, with whom Pete was by now also playing again), and a well-received support to Lanarkshire (then-)punk-popsters The Soup Dragons at the Baths in October (the latter set was recorded and issued as a cassette under the title Sean Burkill...it’s a long story). Jonny left in December, the band broke up as a result...until the following month, when the original quartet reconvened for a pseudonymous Bentley’s one-off, and a further cassette emerged, credited to Johnny X and titled A B & C. This had been recorded solely by Stinky and Squire, and featured versions of band ‘favourites’ alongside a couple of new songs. A planned full-scale relaunch later in 1987 by Stinky (bass) and Squire (guitar), with Pete returning and ex-Gatecrasher Shaun Niland on lead vocals, came to nothing.
Stinky and Pete > Bill Dull Murder; Squire and Shaun > My Foolish Friend; Jonny > Murderous Musicians; Nic > Big Red Gun
Stinky and Pete > Bill Dull Murder; Squire and Shaun > My Foolish Friend; Jonny > Murderous Musicians; Nic > Big Red Gun
DAZ LLOYD had no shortage of work to get on with after Declaration’s split. His first tape of solo material (Bill Of Rights) appeared just a few months afterwards; two more (Stand Up And Be Counted and The Circle) followed, as well as a number of one-man-and-his-guitar appearances at town gigs, over the next few years (a friendship with the Hackney punk band The Apostles also led to a hastily-arranged appearance, at an August 1988 Bentley’s all-dayer, by The Piranha Brothers: Daz on guitar/vocals, Apostle Dave ‘LAMF’ Fanning on bass/vocals, and Pete Lazenby on drums/vocals; a recording of the set was later issued as The Ballad Of Spiny Norman). The year prior to that, Daz had also spent some time in Terminus (contributing guitar to the first single), as well as joining the Murderous Musicians; eventually a move to London came around the turn of the ’90s. There he recorded a fourth solo set, Sic Syke, and doubtless busied himself further until his return to Scunthorpe in the summer of 1997 – which was followed far too soon by his tragic death, at the age of 30 (see ‘In Memoriam’ page).
THE SHREDDIES eventually developed from the kind of drunken Rock Open joke all too prevalent in the late 1980s into quite an appealing prospect – though it took its time to do so. The first stable/serious line-up consisted of Sean Burkill (who’d founded and named the band in 1986) on vocals alongside Geoff Bolam (guitar) and Pete Davies (drums; both also of Barton band Aki and, prior to that, the Obscene Females) and Mark ‘Mackie’ MacAnaney (guitar) and Dom Roberts (bass; both also of Crowle outfit The Woodcutter’s Angel). In time Mackie would depart and Pete would be replaced by Towie (following Black Winter’s split), though not even Sean’s 1988 move to Leeds could derail the juggernaut as Michael ‘Stig’ McCrystal stepped in to replace him. From here on The Shreddies truly hit their stride; covers of the Butthole Surfers and Dinosaur Jr rubbing shoulders with equally indelicate originals, and the band lasted into the ’90s to record the wittily-titled demo Cereal Killers (by now with second guitarist Leigh Bain, later of Terminus; and with ‘Olly’ Oliveria [formerly of Brigg band The Diseased] behind the kit).
Towie > Worlds Apart
Towie > Worlds Apart
THE GATECRASHERS first appeared in summer 1986 and more or less saw out the remainder of the decade: of that much we’re pretty sure; but it appears to contradict what you’ve read elsewhere about Big Red Gun’s move to London, as Figgy was the drummer in both bands and – as talented a man as he is – never (to our knowledge) mastered the art of bi-location. Ah well. In this outfit he was joined by younger brother Simon and erstwhile Lulu Kiss Me Dead colleague Kev Davies on guitars, with ‘Herbie’ Herbert on bass and Shaun Niland on lead vocals. The last named departed early the following year, after which the band lay dormant until a December Bentley’s gig under the name Thee Smythes: now with ‘Butch’ on lead vocals, future gigs (and a three-track demo from 1988) would see them reverting to the original name. The Gatecrashers owed much to the Smiths-influenced indiepop of their time; a few years later Figgy (now on guitar) and Butch would resurface in Wasted Life, playing covers of the punk favourites of their younger years: at a time when such bands weren’t nearly as prevalent as they now are.
Shaun > Johnny X, My Foolish Friend; Simon > Worlds Apart
Shaun > Johnny X, My Foolish Friend; Simon > Worlds Apart
TIGER LILY MIND was a ‘power trio’, more prog-minded than most on these pages, and founded in 1986 by guitarist/vocalist Andy Wright. The original line-up was completed by Vinnie Windsor on bass and drummer Harey, the latter moonlighting from Max. In later years, following the latter’s departure to Terminus, Jim McGee could be found behind the kit on at least one occasion; though Andy apparently ended the decade with a solo appearance in the 1989 Open under the handle The Electric Busker.
Harey > Terminus
Harey > Terminus
DELILAH HEART-THROB GO! made their debut in May 1987 supporting Leicester ‘grebo’ outfit Crazyhead at The Place (another short-lived club night, held in the same upstairs room at The Crosby known at different times as The Hangar, and promoted by Brigg record shop proprietor Stuart Green). Vocalist Shane Wells, guitarist Chris Dale, bassist Paddy Niland and drummer Tony Naylor continued to pop up here ‘n’ there over the next year or so – at that year’s Rock Open they were joined by Shaun Peeroo on second guitar – and in early ’88 a demo, Overload And Out The Door, gained a limited circulation. DHTG! weren’t slow in picking up something of a fan club, the ‘Rhino Throb Squad’; the significance of said mammal to the band was never clear, but the RTS’s rallying cry of "rhiiinooo!" was often to be heard not only at Delilah’s gigs but those of virtually anybody at Bentley’s. The band had no sooner disbanded (spring ’88) than they were informed they’d been granted a support slot at a Baths gig; rather than pass this chance up they reconvened with the revised line-up of Paddy (now vocals/guitar), Chris and Tony with Chris ‘Magz’ McGarry on bass. It wasn’t an inspired/inspiring performance, and a more permanent split followed soon after.
Chris and Paddy > Incinerator
Chris and Paddy > Incinerator
DAWN was, simply, Dawn; Dawn Searles that is, who appeared in three Rock Opens (1987, 1988 and 1990) as perhaps the only poet to ever enter the competition. On the first two occasions she was accompanied respectively by Harey on bass, then by Shaun Peeroo (see Delilah Heart-Throb Go!) on guitar, going it alone for the 1990 outing. Appearances elsewhere were sparse – there was at least one gig at The Queens, though the licensees at Bentley’s continually fought shy of putting her on; odd considering that Dawn’s most appreciative audience was largely made up of Bentley’s regulars. Her work was in broadly similar vein to – and, possibly, partially inspired by – the Bradford-based poet (and New Model Army associate) Joolz.
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BILL DULL MURDER was only named thus for one appearance – the 1987 Rock Open – after which the band became known as The Hoverchairs. However, since after their split nearer the year’s end that name was (eventually) reused by three members for a subsequent – and musically very different – outfit, here we’ll stick with the original handle to differentiate. Mik Henry and Singer (previously together in Jesuit’s Bark; both lead vocals) were joined by Shaun Cooper and Stinky (guitars), Paul ‘Zico’ Barnes (bass) and Pete Lazenby (drums) to mix Jesuit’s Bark’s more esoteric influences with a brutally primitive, metallic post-punk. Lyrics were incomprehensible, but the song titles were intriguing ("Not Reacting", "Internal Slump", "Shake My Hand And Spit In My Face" etc). The ace up the band’s sleeve, however, was "Do The Hover" – a untypically melodic indiepop earworm with a "la la la" chorus/coda that was on occasion stretched out to ten or more minutes; when the band played the Priory in October an infuriated audience member who’d thrown a glass ashtray stagewards earlier in the set was later up with the band and singing along to this closing song.
Stinky, Zico > My Foolish Friend; Shaun > The Hoverchairs; Pete > Ethereal Denizens
Stinky, Zico > My Foolish Friend; Shaun > The Hoverchairs; Pete > Ethereal Denizens
THE DAY IT RAINED FROGS had apparently first been mooted as a band name by Nic Salmon (vocals/guitar) as far back as 1982, but it wasn’t until 1987 that he first carried out the threat, in collaboration with Shaun Tighe on bass (and a drum machine). That debut, a Rock Open heat which they won (surprising no-one more than themselves), led to a further appearances in various locations over the next few years; and while ‘The Frogs’ was always strictly a two-man outfit, gigs often featured one of a number of ‘live’ drummers who were drafted in as sort of honorary tadpoles...and usually also evidenced Nic’s endearing inability to remember his lyrics without the aid of cue sheets. For the 1990 Open appearance (under the name The Lesser Blessed) Shaun moved to second guitar with Amanda Thorley appearing on bass, while Nic’s last Open showing three years later (as Crier les Chiens) was made with the help of Pete Lazenby on drums and the previously mentioned (under Fault 151) Steve Bird, whose musical CV stretched back to his 1963 co-founding of The Kraakans, on bass.
MY FOOLISH FRIEND were formed by Shaun Niland (vocals) and Steve Squire (guitar) solely for the 1987 Rock Open: the original idea had been that this band, and Bill Dull Murder, would be one-offs and that Shaun and Squire would reunite with Stinky and Pete (from the latter outfit) and resume work as Johnny X straight afterwards. It didn’t happen that way, and MFF’s subsequent story is no less odd. For that first Rock Open they were joined by Nic Salmon on bass and Gatecrashers guitarist Si on...drums; following this – and the eventual October split of Bill Dull Murder/The Hoverchairs – that band’s Stinky and Zico moved in on guitar and bass respectively, Si departed and Nic moved to drums. This line up lasted but one gig before Stinky, Zico and Nic moved on to become three-quarters of The Hoverchairs (mk 2, if you like)...leaving Shaun and Squire once again as a two piece. Their only subsequent showing was in the ’88 Open – with Incinerator bassist/Shaun’s brother Paddy, and Pete Lazenby on drums. By the 1989 Open, Shaun was perfecting his Keef Richards guitar stance (with tongue firmly in cheek) in a band named The Best Of Friends.
Stinky, Zico, Nic > The Hoverchairs
Stinky, Zico, Nic > The Hoverchairs
ETHEREAL DENIZENS appeared in late 1987; Johnny Harris (vocals) and Geoff Bolam (guitar) had both previously been in the respected Barton-based outfit Aki, while brothers Chris (bass) and Pete (drums) Lazenby had been founder members of Terminus. A number of local gigs ensued over the following couple of years at Bentley’s and The Queens, as well as a brace of Rock Open showings and a couple of gigs at Doncaster’s Saracen’s Head (where they were always well received); in September 1988 an untitled demo was also recorded. After their split towards the end of 1989 Geoff continued with The Shreddies (with whom he’d played for some time during the Denizens’ existence); Chris and Pete next appeared together in 1999 on the final ‘formal’ Terminus recording to date.
INCINERATOR, as previously noted, was formed by Sid and Steve of Max in early 1988 as an outlet for those ideas they felt not suited to that band; the original line-up was completed by Delilah Heart-Throb Go! bass player Paddy. In time this became the sole vehicle for all concerned, and the usual round of gigs was accompanied a six-song demo (I Dream Of Sin) towards the end of the year. Paddy’s former bandmate in Delilah, guitarist Chris Dale, was added to the line-up in March 1989; that summer Incinerator also won their Rock Open heat. Moving beyond the band’s split not long into the new decade, Sid could be found fronting a three-piece outfit named The Thirteens.
Chris, Paddy and Steve > Terminus
Chris, Paddy and Steve > Terminus
THE HOVERCHAIRS were relaunched (see Bill Dull Murder) in spring 1988, by Christopher alias C P Henry (vocals/guitar), Paul Barnes (bass) and Nic Salmon (drums) – all most recently, albeit briefly, of My Foolish Friend – with Shaun Cooper re-entering the fray on guitar. Concentrating on an indiepop brief, with the emphasis on ‘pop’, later that year Nic – always the first to concede his shortcomings as a drummer – stepped aside in favour of Jeremy ‘Jaz’ Clarke. The Hovers were perhaps both the most travelled and most prolific Scunthorpe band of the late ’80s; local press notices of another round of far-flung gigs would be routinely sneered at by other outfits not nearly as active, while a new demo seemed to appear almost every month. Another band for whom the deserved ‘big break’ never came, they did nevertheless leave a vinyl legacy in the form of the "Hide and Seek" 7" (Tempest Records TROY 7; June 1989). Into the new decade, C P and Paul worked in broadly similar vein in the trio Dan Dare, alongside drummer Steve Askew.
DAN DARE formed as a trio in November 1991 and continued where The Hoverchairs left off, playing up and down the country. Sean Coleman (of the band Kennedy) joined for a handful of gigs and the occasional guest appearance on studio recordings.
There was a strict rule in place not to play The Hoverchairs material, but this was eventually relaxed when Shaun Cooper joined in 1993 after Sean Coleman's departure. Dan Dare released eight demo tapes and two seven inch singles.
The first single was TOP QUALITY (came out in mid-1992 on German label Meller Welle Produkt), some of which was played on Radio 1 by John Peel. The second single was HEAVENMETAL (released 1993 on Spanish label Elefante, which technically makes us brief 'labelmates' with The Primitives and BMX Bandits).
In 1993 Stinky and Shaun Cooper did a 'side project' called SHATNER - recorded one demo tape which included a song later recorded by Dan Dare (on their last demo in early 1994). Dan Dare split in early 1994, Steve Askew joined The Golightlys in Sheffield, while Stinky, Shaun and Zico recruited Andy Fig and became Driver 8, who recorded one demo tape and played a handful of gigs before splitting up. (Info courtesy of Steven T Askew)
There was a strict rule in place not to play The Hoverchairs material, but this was eventually relaxed when Shaun Cooper joined in 1993 after Sean Coleman's departure. Dan Dare released eight demo tapes and two seven inch singles.
The first single was TOP QUALITY (came out in mid-1992 on German label Meller Welle Produkt), some of which was played on Radio 1 by John Peel. The second single was HEAVENMETAL (released 1993 on Spanish label Elefante, which technically makes us brief 'labelmates' with The Primitives and BMX Bandits).
In 1993 Stinky and Shaun Cooper did a 'side project' called SHATNER - recorded one demo tape which included a song later recorded by Dan Dare (on their last demo in early 1994). Dan Dare split in early 1994, Steve Askew joined The Golightlys in Sheffield, while Stinky, Shaun and Zico recruited Andy Fig and became Driver 8, who recorded one demo tape and played a handful of gigs before splitting up. (Info courtesy of Steven T Askew)
THE WILLIAMS were formed in 1988 by the Fairnie brothers Alan (guitar/vocals) and Paul (drums: "only two of them") with Ian Cummings on bass. Firmly aligning themselves with the fanzine-and-flexidisc indiepop subculture of the time (a bedroom recording of "I Know I’m Nothing Special To You" was included on a flexi in the second edition of Alan’s Get That Anorak Off ’zine in January 1989 – several months before the band’s eponymous studio demo appeared), the almost apologetic nature of their earliest gigs led to their being dismissed by many local fans (and ridiculed by some members of other local bands, who really ought to have known better). Over time The Williams beefed up their sound somewhat – they readily acknowledged the influence of Dinosaur Jr – and, into the 1990s, struck out again under the name Smile.
WORLDS APART were fronted by Mark Salmon who, according to the previously-mentioned (under Fatal Feudalism) newspaper clipping on the Musiclincs site, had been a member (alongside the oft-aforementioned Robbo) of the otherwise undocumented Infernal Row (great name!) near the beginning of the decade. A few years later, he and Chris ‘Gibbs’ Whitfield collaborated on two or three issues of a fanzine (Exercise One) though it wasn’t until 1988 that the pair (Mark on vocals, Gibbs on bass) put Worlds Apart together, the founding line-up being completed by Bri Kerr on guitar and – following initial rehearsals with a drum machine – Jim McGee on drums (though the last-named was soon replaced by Towie). Locally popular from the off, their brand of Factory Records-tinged dance music earned them the runner-up spot in their Rock Open heat that year while a demo, Innocence, was recorded the following April. Shortly after this a second guitarist, ex-Gatecrasher Simon Figliuzzi, was added, and in 1989 they won their Rock Open heat (being placed third in the final). Later that same year Gibbs departed; the others struck out anew with Shaun McLoughlin on bass and the new handle Honeyfungus, though this incarnation folded after a year or so. As a footnote, in 1988 certain members – and friends – of Worlds Apart made an additional Rock Open appearance under the name Wrecked ’Um (we’re guessing this wasn’t meant to be taken entirely seriously), which might be seen as a spiritual forerunner of early Slipknot. Meaning: the band members all wore masks, and the ‘music’ was a tuneless and unlistenable sub-HM sludge.
NB: Cheers to Gibbs for his corrections and additions to the original text.
NB: Cheers to Gibbs for his corrections and additions to the original text.
BRUCIE’S CHIN closes these pages as we near the end of the ’80s; exactly how many of the bands mentioned above could be classed as sublime is debatable, but we’re certainly finishing off with the most supremely ridiculous. Kavvy (keys) and Finch (guitar) – both previously in the not overly-comical and occasionally rather-scary-actually Non Prink/Jesuit’s Bark – reunited alongside vocalist John ‘Fully’ Fullerton; together they named themselves after the famously prominent facial feature belonging to British variety legend Bruce Forsyth. Several of the band’s songs are equally legendary (at least in Scunthorpe): one addressed the topic of spotting supposedly deceased rock stars in supermarkets; another was an extended sales pitch for household cleaning products; a third compared the size of a male badger’s genitalia to that of a well-known Liverpudlian comedian. A studio demo of all the above and more eventually appeared in 1991 but, regrettably, none of ‘the Chinners’’ legendary live shows (invariably with Fully in ugly ‘TV game show host’ garb) was preserved on video. Oh, and they reached the Rock Open final in 1989. "Didn’t they do well!"
acta est fabula