by BBG

Gizz Butt

To certain fans of punk, crust, and metal, Gizz Butt may be a familiar face. Gizz Butt recently logged time performing Crass tunes as a member of Steve Ignorant's Last Supper, is the current bassist for UK thrash greats Sabbat, served as guitarist for the live lineup of The Prodigy and is currently one of the driving forces behind the reformation of the English Dogs: Forward Into Battle lineup.

Gizz Butt, who was a member of the band during that classic period, is preparing to hit the road with the English Dogs for a string of US dates that include the upcoming show at Europa on 2/12 (tickets). We cornered guitarist to discuss the upcoming tour, the reunion, Rudimentary Peni, Rachmaninov, Excel and his thoughts on the "other" English Dogs. The results are below.

Continue reading "An interview with English Dogs guitarist Gizz Butt"

by BBG

The Dwarves at Fun Fun Fun Fest (more by Tim Griffin)

"THE DWARVES were kicked off tour with Motorhead for sleeping with the girls the aging metalheads had hired to hang out backstage. They were banned from venerable punk dive CBGBs for breaking a table and bleeding on the floor, making the venue cleaner and improving its décor." [25 THINGS YOU DON'T KNOW ABOUT THE DWARVES]

The Dwarves are celebrating 25 years of mischief with a new collection with songs titles like "The Dwarves Are Still The Best Band Ever", "We Only Came To Get High", and "Happy Birthday Suicide"...

That's right folks, the Dwarves magnum opus is done and set to drop May 10, 2011 on vinyl and cd, both including a free dvd! 25 years in the making the Dwarves Are Born Again features heroes from throughout the Dwarves saga. Blag the Ripper, HeWhoCanNotBeNamed, Rex Everything, the Fresh Prince of Darkness and a cast of thousands including Vadge Moore and Sgt. Saltpeter from the notorious Blood, Guts and Pussy record return to crush the ears of a desperate public.

Stream it below, or with a large amount of their output at their bandcamp. As you may/may not know Dwarves member Rex Everything currently goes by his government name Nick Oliveri (ex-Queens of The Stone Age, Mondo Generator).

The Dwarves have a few dates on the way including an appearance at Punk Rock Bowling in Las Vegas and two NYC dates: July 15th at Knitting Factory and July 16th at The Studio at Webster Hall. Tickets for both the Knitting Factory date and the Studio date go on sale Friday at 10AM. All other Dwarves dates are below.

--
Steve Ignorant rehearsing earlier this month

In other news, after a stutter a few weeks ago, TONIGHT (4/20) marks the return of Steve Ignorant to the U.S. to play Crass songs at Europa. Dog That Bites Everyone Thulsa Doom,A.P.P.L.E., and Goldblade open the Brooklyn show... though there is a rumor that Goldblade, who are supporting on the whole tour, may not get here in time for tonight's show due to visa issues (update: rumour confirmed as true) (maybe you caught them at Southpaw in 2003). if not, they will hopefully make it soon though, and definitely in time for the sold-out Santos Party House 'Crass songs' show on 5/8. Tickets for tonight's Europa show are still available, and a full list of Steve Ignorant tour openers is below (Santos has Goldblade, Cult Of Youth and Primitive Weapons).

Also tonight (4/20), strangely, ex-Black Flag/current-Misfits-er Dez Cadena will hit Park Slope venue Union Hall with his band Dez Cadena & The Broken Down Bitches, as well as The Slants and Lunic. Tickets are still available.

Speaking Black Flag, two Black Flag vocalists (Henry Rollins & Keith Morris with his band Off!) will share one stage (Terminal 5) as part of a show/tour with Dinosaur Jr. Since that show was announced, Off! also announced even more tour dates which are listed below.

And while we're on the subject, former Misfits vocalist Glenn Danzig heads out on a tour that hits Starland Ballroom in his birth state next month. The current version of the Misfits play Festival For Humanity in Vernon, NJ on May 27th.

In more modern punk news (and other "Off" news), Off With Their Heads will team with Dead To Me for a string of US dates surrounding their appearance at Best Friends Day, including Knitting Factory on August 4th with The Holy Mess and Brian Bruner. Tickets are on sale.

And last and probably least, CJ Ramone will play The Studio at Webster Hall on July 9th, performing "an all Ramones set with Ramones producer Daniel Rey on guitar". Tickets are on sale. Joey Ramone died a little more than 10 years ago, and his birthday will again be celebrated at Irving Plaza in May.

All tour dates and that Dwarves stream is below.

Continue reading "new Dwarves LP & dates, Steve Ignorant is here, Dez Cadena too ++ CJ Ramone, updated Off! dates, Off With Their Heads"

I knew that Steve Ignorant saying "The only the problem is the visas" wasn't a good sign. Steve posted the following 'Emergency Annoucement' to his website:

I'm really really gutted to have to let you all know that we have to reschedule our USA and Canadian gigs. There's a delay with the issue of the visas we require to enter the USA. We hope it will all be sorted soon but we will NOT be able to make the scheduled gigs.

I would ask everyone to please hold onto your tickets and give us about a week to announce new dates. We will reschedule as soon as possible and tickets will be valid for the rescheduled dates, however, if you think 'fuck it, I want my money back', then do that and I will completely understand.

I know that loads of you have been planning to travel for these gigs and that rescheduling them will be a right kick in the bollocks for you. I'm really, really genuinely very sorry about this. Please understand that this situation is costing me and the band a load of emotional upset, it's not the money, it's the letting you lot down, the bands that we were going to play with, all the people that have worked so fucking hard to put this thing together and if we could have done anything to avoid it we would have. Honestly, with all my heart, there was nothing else we could do. PLEASE, if you could let other gig-goers know that it's off for now through your emails and face books or whatever means you can please do so. I know these are only typed words and words aint enough but it's all I can do. To say I feel a right xxxt would be an understatement. This is the worse thing I've ever had to do. We really appreciate your support and we will do these gigs one way or another. Here are the rescheduled dates that will be confirmed as soon as our visas are confirmed. Until the powers that be grant us entry there's nothing more I can do at the moment. Again, I'm really so sorry about all this.

Everything is tbc pending visas but we are hoping they will get issued this week.

All tickets will be good for the rescheduled shows.

The first show, originally scheduled for March 10th at Santos, is now the last and happening on May 8th, and the recently-added 3/26 show at Don Hill's has now been moved to 4/20 at Europa, making it the new first show of the tour.

Meanwhile, the 3/10 show at Santos WILL happen, but just without any Crass...

Ok,so as most of you probably know by now Steve Ignorants' "Crass" has had some visa issues and is moving their show originally scheduled for THIS THURSDAY March 10th @ Santos Party House in NYC to May 8th 2011.

However the rest of the bands on the bill WILL BE PLAYING!!!

Line up is as follows:
LEFTOVER CRACK
THULSA DOOM (reunion)
A TRUTH
and special guest maybe.

Show has two ticket prices:
$5 for anyone bringing proof of either a ticket or print out proving they purchased an online ticket for Crass (and you'll still be able to use that ticket at the CRASS make-up show on May 8th).
$8 everyone else., Doors at 7pm, Show starts at 8pm

All rescheduled tour dates are below.

Continue reading "Steve Ignorant's "Performing Crass" tour rescheduled! (Leftover Crack still playing Santos, Don Hill moves to Europa)"

by BBG

Steve Ignorant

Daily Swarm: How have the preparations been going?

Steve Ignorant: The only the problem is the visas. Lots of forms to fill and I've got to go down to the American embassy and all that... but I should be okay. We've been practicing on and off since we finished Europe, really. That was in November. Actually this Friday will be the last rehearsals before we come to the States, so we if we don't know it by then, we'll never know it. The actual songs are okay, it's just the joints between the songs and remembering the order and making sure we know it backwards and inside out. We want to do as good a job as possible.

Daily Swarm: Who's in the band that's performing with you?

Steve Ignorant: I've got a different drummer from London, a guy called Spike T. Smith: he's performed with Morrissey and also with Conflict. I've also got Bob Butler on bass, and Gizz Butt on lead guitar. Steve Well isn't doing any it more - he was rhythm guitar - and we've got a different vocalist now for the female part, Carol Hodge from Manchester.

Steve Ignorant kicks off his previously discussed "Steve Ignorant performing Crass Songs" tour at Santos Party House on March 10th. That show is now sold out, but the punk frontman has scheduled another! Tickets are on sale now for Steve Ignorant at Don Hill's on March 26th with Goldblade. That now means Steve starts and ends the tour in NYC. All dates are listed below.

March 26th is a busy night for punk & metal fans. NYC will be flooded with a wealth of notable shows: Sick Of It All/Snapcase, Hull/Horseback, OFF/Trash Talk, and Nunslaughter/Disma just to name a few.

In a video interview, part of which makes its debut in this post, Steve discusses the tour and his frustration with the shows being billed as Crass shows. Watch that, with all tour dates, below....

Continue reading "Steve Ignorant adds another 'performing Crass' show ----- (updated 2011 tour dates & a video interview)"

by BBG

Crass 2011: Gizz Butt on guitar, Beki Straughan on vocals, Steve Ignorant, Bob Butler on bass and Spike T. Smith on drums

Crass were an English punk rock band that was formed in 1977, which promoted anarchism as a political ideology, way of living, and as a resistance movement. Crass popularised the seminal anarcho-punk movement of the punk subculture, and advocated direct action, animal rights, and environmentalism. The band both utilised and advocated a DIY punk ethic approach, producing sound collages, graphics, albums, and films. Crass also criticised mainstream culture and attempted to subvert it with messages promoting feminism, anti-racism, anti-war, and anti-globalisation.-[Wiki]

Crass called it quits in 1984 and left an indelible mark on punk culture today. They self-released all of their LPs, and now frontman Steve Ignorant is preparing to reissue their output, against the wishes of some original members:

Ex-Berliner: Are the other members of Crass concerned about what this [European] tour and Crass reissues might be doing to their reputation?

Steve Ignorant: Well, some of the members are. There are three members who are totally against these re-releases, and I don't think they've got any idea whatsoever about how important those records are to people. I just don't understand how they can sit there and say, "No, there shouldn't be these releases. The only releases that should be allowed are the original vinyl." Well, a lot of people don't have record players anymore. Or they can download off the computer - well, not everybody's got a computer. I just think... I mean, why shouldn't they be available to people?

As mentioned in the question above, there was also a tour. Steve Ignorant assembled a new band to play Crass songs (lineup of new band members above, note that Penny Rimbaud is not among them), and they already went on a European tour. Now, Crass, billed offically as "Steve Ignorant's The Last Supper: Crass Songs 1977 - 1984" will visit North America for a tour that will include a NYC show on March 10th, 2011 at Santos Party House "with very special guests". Tickets are on sale. If you consider this Crass, then the Santos show will probably be Crass's first U.S. show in thirty years. They reportedly played NYC in '78 or '79. All current tour dates are below.

Steve Ignorant recently dropped The Rest is Propaganda, a new book writtien with Steve Pottinger that has given way to book talks across the UK. The book is not a history on the band, but an account of "how Stephen Williams became Steve Ignorant".

Penny Rimbaud, who is ok with Steve playing Crass songs and with the reissues, also just released a book. Penny and Steve both recently talked to Vice about their non-Crass-like legal battle with other members.

Full tour dates and some videos are below...

Continue reading "Steve Ignorant bringing Crass to America (2011 dates) "

alan turing shows off his jeff lewis band cd (big bozo)

[In the UK, Jeffrey Lewis] will sell out venues that hold up to 800 fans. Back in America, though, a headlining slot at Bowery Ballroom is the highest-profile gig he'll play behind his new Rough Trade album 'Em Are I, and even that seems a bit excessive to him. "If we were hitting, like, 150 or 200 people everywhere around the States, that would be totally fine," he says. "Once it starts getting above, like, 400, it just takes it into a different context." [Village Voice]

That Jeffrey Lewis Bowery Ballroom show happened on Wednesday, May 20th. It was the CD release show for his latest record, 'Em Are I, out now on Rough Trade. Were you there?

Jeffrey's previous record, 2007's 12 Crass Songs, was exactly that - an LP of Crass covers. About.com asked him about that...

Lots of aging punks got mad at the Dirty Projectors with their Black Flag album [Rise Above]. Did you find similar resentment?

"Mine was a very different record to the Dirty Projectors'. Black Flag songs are not so big on the content removed from the context, so putting them into this modern, art-rock, hipster context takes away whatever it is that makes those songs meaningful. With the Crass stuff, it wasn't a case of obscuring the message, but focusing it, by giving their lyrics a straight-forward presentation. In that way, it was like the opposite to the Dirty Projectors' project, so there was total irony in the fact that those records came out around the same time, and were always compared to each other. I do get some flack from the most devoted of Crass fans, but Crass themselves were really nice about it. I was talking to Dave [Longstreth] of the Dirty Projectors and he was saying that they just never heard any word from Black Flag at all. They tried getting in contact and met with no response. So it was pretty cool that Crass were so welcoming and supportive of me."

From Lewis' popularity overseas, it's not suprising that the songwriter calls the UK's Rough Trade Records home. After his current tour of the Northeast, which includes some dates with Au Revoir Simone, Lewis will meet with the Brits in Art Brut to perform as the "special guest" on the last night of that band's 5-day Mercury Lounge run (no We Are Scientists this time around).

Lewis recently said goodbye to his NY Times Measure for Measure blog with a final post. Coming up, look for the singer to update his 2008 Daytrotter session with a visit to the Rock Island studio in June.

Video from Lewis's May 20th Bowery show, and one of Jeff playing with Emmy the Great, plus all tour dates, below...

Continue reading "Jeffrey Lewis played Bowery Ballroom, revealed as Art Brut's special guest -- new album out now, more tour dates "