Brixton and surrounds musical history thread...artistes, venues, gigs, festivals and more......

[cuppa tee]

Inspired by spitfire and this post Mighty Hoopla, Cross The Tracks, Wide Awake & Field Day festivals, Brockwell Park - discussion. I thought it might be good to have a thread celebrating the musical history of the area. When I moved here there was loads of musical action going on. Obviously the Alabama 3 were the big name but there was loads more, I was in a band at the time, and there were plenty of creative characters floating and that was only a relatively narrow part of it. Were you in a band, what was your top venues and nights.....this is a thread for sharing and hopefully illuminating, with all styles and genres hopefully represented...

 

[teuchter]

Have you looked at this?

Music Hall Brixton and Beyond

The Loughborough Road history project is working with Christine Beddoe (legmania.co.uk) and Sue McKenzie researching Brixton and Lambeth’s associations with music hall. The Society for Theatr…

loughboroughroadsw9histories.wordpress.com

 

[cuppa tee]

Have you looked at this?

Music Hall Brixton and Beyond

The Loughborough Road history project is working with Christine Beddoe (legmania.co.uk) and Sue McKenzie researching Brixton and Lambeth’s associations with music hall. The Society for Theatr…

loughboroughroadsw9histories.wordpress.com

That’s new to me, I will check it out....thank you

 

[spitfire]

Inspired by spitfire and this post Mighty Hoopla, Cross The Tracks, Wide Awake & Field Day festivals, Brockwell Park - discussion. I thought it might be good to have a thread celebrating the musical history of the area. When I moved here there was loads of musical action going on. Obviously the Alabama 3 were the big name but there was loads more, I was in a band at the time, and there were plenty of creative characters, and that was only a relatively narrow part of it. Were you in a band, what was your top venues and nights.....this is a thread for sharing and hopefully illuminating, with all styles and genres hopefully represented...

Great idea, much better than a Dogstar specific thread, would have been short.

I'm simultaneously pleased and sad that we didn't have cameraphones so there's not a lot of evidence of our misbehaviour. But there must be some. I have some Dogstar and Mass flyers in storage so will dig them out one day.

Venues/parties I remember (not a complete list and not in order).

The Crypt (before Bugbar)
The Bunker (brief and dangerous)
Anto's parties
Ramport scaffolding
Cooltan, both sites
Dogstar, incomer now an institution
Various arches and squats
Mass
414
George IV

and the daddy

Brady's

 

[spitfire]

Bands that I remember.

Headrillaz
Lowfinger
Abalamadingdong 3

 

[editor]

And then there's this:

Back in the day: a Brixton bar and club guide from 2001

Digging through the archives of our sister site urban 75, we came across our Brixton Bar & Club Guide from 2001, and it was interesting to see what has – and what hasn’t – cha…

www.brixtonbuzz.com

 

[cuppa tee]

Bands that I remember.

Headrillaz
Lowfinger
Abalamadingdong 3

dunno about the last one but knew the ‘drillaz and Phil.
i was friend of the lowfinger lads, I run into Big D at the last country show and he gifted us a bunch of vinyl and cds of his new project. Used to go to the Fly parties, don’t remember any in Brixton but there was one in a interesting venue in an arch down Vauxhall with a medieval torture device in the room..

 

[spitfire]

And then there's this:

Back in the day: a Brixton bar and club guide from 2001

Digging through the archives of our sister site urban 75, we came across our Brixton Bar & Club Guide from 2001, and it was interesting to see what has – and what hasn’t – cha…

www.brixtonbuzz.com

See, Dogstar should never have got rid of us as residents.

No "Cheesy High-Heel Disco Hell" when we were there.

 

[editor]

I've documented a fair few urban-related nights from 1998 onwards (apols for nano-sized images but these are from the early internet days when a 28.8k modem would be seen as a speed king)

OFFLINE (urban75 monthly club nights):
» Offline club nights 2004-2010 full listing


PLUS
Picnic after-party, Brixton, July 2007
urban75 social Brixton, May 2007
New Year's Eve 2005, Unsound
Urbanites 9: Telegraph, 22nd March 2003
Urbanites 8: Telegraph, 14th December 2002
Urbanites 6: Ministry of Unsound, 2nd Aug 2002
Urbanites 5: Ministry of Unsound, 31st May 2002
urbanites 4: Ministry of Unsound, 5th April 2002
urbanites 3: Ministry of Unsound, 8th Feb 2002
urbanites 2: Telegraph, Brixton Hill November 2001
urbanites 1: Telegraph, Brixton Hill Sept 2001
New Year's Eve 98-99

From: urban75: the drink, the drugs, the parties and the curries, with photos from Urbanite parties, squat raves, clubs, pubs, bars and more!.

 

[spitfire]

Well as it turns out I got my first digital camera in 2001 and this would have been some of the last pictures I took whilst DJing on a Saturday. Definitely no cheesy disco!

What it looked like with a flash.





What it really looked like.

 

[cuppa tee]

And then there's this:

Back in the day: a Brixton bar and club guide from 2001

Digging through the archives of our sister site urban 75, we came across our Brixton Bar & Club Guide from 2001, and it was interesting to see what has – and what hasn’t – cha…

www.brixtonbuzz.com

2001 was the year our kid was born so things changed....

 

[spitfire]

View from the booth.

 

[cuppa tee]

View from the booth.

View attachment 287733

I never got inside that booth, the only time I played the dogstar was when I got roped in to do a warm up for some college do in the haunted ballroom upstairs, the warm up worked because the crowd were all indie guitar fans, after educating them with a mix of oddities including krautrock, dub, psychedelia and 70s folk rock during which time the dance floor remained untroubled, the promotor told me play one more and finish so I stuck on Manuel Gottschung, after ten minutes they realised something was not right so they took it off, the first notes of blur sent the place into frenzy. Strangely I had played Wires ’ I am the fly’ it got no response at all

 

[cuppa tee]

Lowfinger

here is a couple of pre lowfinger numbers on the holistic recordings imprint out of kennington

 

[Puddy_Tat]

Theatres in Brixton, London has a fair bit on the theatres / music halls of victorian (and later) brixton

1987: dancing in Brixton and beyond may be of interest

the recent 'dub london' exhibition at museum of london included some brixton stuff - some still online

this is the blurb for an australian tv prog (doesn't seem to be on their website) about reggae in brixton.

 

[cuppa tee]

Theatres in Brixton, London has a fair bit on the theatres / music halls of victorian (and later) brixton

1987: dancing in Brixton and beyond may be of interest

the recent 'dub london' exhibition at museum of london included some brixton stuff - some still online

this is the blurb for an australian tv prog (doesn't seem to be on their website) about reggae in brixton.

that second link featuring The Alexander is very interesting, the soul nights there brought in a lively and diverse crowd
not sure what is happening at that pub now but it was an oasis of realness in yuppieville, along with the bread and roses previously

 

[Puddy_Tat]

I was surprised (on doing a quickish search last night) not to find a lot more on brixton and reggae - sure i've seen a few sites / blogs but they didn't come to the surface...

 

[spitfire]

here is a couple of pre lowfinger numbers on the holistic recordings imprint out of kennington

I was mates with American Jason from Lowfinger (and Cheryl ), bumped into him and Headrillaz Phil at The Alabama 3 Academy after party. Was great to see them.

I have a Lowfinger tape here. i'll digitise it and stick it up.

 

[cuppa tee]

I was surprised (on doing a quickish search last night) not to find a lot more on brixton and reggae - sure i've seen a few sites / blogs but they didn't come to the surface...

lthats one reason I started this thread, iirc there were posters on these boards who had a lot of knowledge, their names escape me for the time being...

I was mates with American Jason from Lowfinger (and Cheryl ), bumped into him and Headrillaz Phil at The Alabama 3 Academy after party. Was great to see them.

I have a Lowfinger tape here. i'll digitise it and stick it up.

View attachment 287824

that would be interesting to hear for sure....I will share the story of Holistic Recordings at some point here , Big D and Nobby Bollocks put out quite a bit of stuff on that imprint, Also the sunglasses after dark label, home of the infamous “son of ceiling”





did you ever visit the weird beats collective sessions put on by Phil ?

 

[nick]

I've documented a fair few urban-related nights from 1998 onwards (apols for nano-sized images but these are from the early internet days when a 28.8k modem would be seen as a speed king)

OFFLINE (urban75 monthly club nights):
» Offline club nights 2004-2010 full listing


PLUS
Picnic after-party, Brixton, July 2007
urban75 social Brixton, May 2007
New Year's Eve 2005, Unsound
Urbanites 9: Telegraph, 22nd March 2003
Urbanites 8: Telegraph, 14th December 2002
Urbanites 6: Ministry of Unsound, 2nd Aug 2002
Urbanites 5: Ministry of Unsound, 31st May 2002
urbanites 4: Ministry of Unsound, 5th April 2002
urbanites 3: Ministry of Unsound, 8th Feb 2002
urbanites 2: Telegraph, Brixton Hill November 2001
urbanites 1: Telegraph, Brixton Hill Sept 2001
New Year's Eve 98-99

From: urban75: the drink, the drugs, the parties and the curries, with photos from Urbanite parties, squat raves, clubs, pubs, bars and more!.

Far too many MIAs / RIPs in those photos. (and Derek/Steelgate)

 

[editor]

Far too many MIAs / RIPs in those photos. (and Derek/Steelgate)

Indeed. But absolutely no one misses Steelgate!

 

[cuppa tee]

Indeed. But absolutely no one misses Steelgate!

Who or what was Steelgate ?

 

[nick]

IIRC
A persona from the start of the century who presented as being homeless with strange anarchist tendencies mixed with an alarming attitude to women.
Presumably permabanned for pushing it too far.
Occasionally seen around London IRL and went to at least one Offline event.

I'm no expert, but in hindsight I suspect they had varied and complex needs that were not best addressed by arguing with randoms on a bulletin board.

 

[cuppa tee]

thank you for your reply....I’m none the wiser tbh

I suspect they had varied and complex needs that were not best addressed by arguing with randoms on a bulletin board.

that last bit could apply to any number of people tbh....

 

[nick]

No worries
I don't know all of the dirty details
They are no longer here to defend themselves (I assume)
It was all many moons ago

Best to let it lie I suspect

 

[cuppa tee]

....changing the vibe a bit I am gonna mention one of, if not the, biggest acts to come out of Brixton

Hot Chocolate....

..

...as documented here by Brixton Buzz.... You Sexy Thing – Hot Chocolate were a Brixton band
and here..... Hot Chocolate (band)

it would be nice if anyone has memories of live gigs here in Brixton but it looks like their rise to recording stars was fairly rapid being supported by the likes of John Lennon and Mickey Most....these guys record speaks for itself racking up a succession of hits over decades in the fickle world of pop, they were true survivors.....

 

[spitfire]

lthats one reason I started this thread, iirc there were posters on these boards who had a lot of knowledge, their names escape me for the time being...

that would be interesting to hear for sure....I will share the story of Holistic Recordings at some point here , Big D and Nobby Bollocks put out quite a bit of stuff on that imprint, Also the sunglasses after dark label, home of the infamous “son of ceiling”





did you ever visit the weird beats collective sessions put on by Phil ?

I think I went to one or two, very hazy. Everyone and his dog was putting on club nights of some sort or another back then but I remember Phil's for sure.

 

[cuppa tee]

I think I went to one or two, very hazy. Everyone and his dog was putting on club nights of some sort or another back then but I remember Phil's for sure.

yeah as I said in the first post on this thread it was a very creative time, do you remember an outfit called A1 People....?

 

[spitfire]

yeah as I said in the first post on this thread it was a very creative time, do you remember an outfit called A1 People....?

God yeah, forgotten about them.

 

[TopCat]

I've documented a fair few urban-related nights from 1998 onwards (apols for nano-sized images but these are from the early internet days when a 28.8k modem would be seen as a speed king)

OFFLINE (urban75 monthly club nights):
» Offline club nights 2004-2010 full listing


PLUS
Picnic after-party, Brixton, July 2007
urban75 social Brixton, May 2007
New Year's Eve 2005, Unsound
Urbanites 9: Telegraph, 22nd March 2003
Urbanites 8: Telegraph, 14th December 2002
Urbanites 6: Ministry of Unsound, 2nd Aug 2002
Urbanites 5: Ministry of Unsound, 31st May 2002
urbanites 4: Ministry of Unsound, 5th April 2002
urbanites 3: Ministry of Unsound, 8th Feb 2002
urbanites 2: Telegraph, Brixton Hill November 2001
urbanites 1: Telegraph, Brixton Hill Sept 2001
New Year's Eve 98-99

From: urban75: the drink, the drugs, the parties and the curries, with photos from Urbanite parties, squat raves, clubs, pubs, bars and more!.

Blimey. Pics from twenty years back! I’m still married in the early ones!